Bad as she wants me to be
by RoguesKnight
Summary: Ron and Kim have been friends forever, now he wants to try taking it to the next level. However a shocking discovery sends him into the arms of the last person he'd ever expect comfort from. ...RonShego Rated M or MA...not for the kiddies. Complete.
1. Chapter 1

Bad as she wants me to be

Chapter 1: Broken Hearts, Broken Trust

Author: RoguesKnight

Rating: MA…sexual situations and drinking…probably language too.

Disclaimer: Kim Possible and all related characters, likenesses, etc. are the property of Disney. Since I have no desire to tangle with the Mouse's lawyers, I'm not trying to make a profit here. Please don't sue, I just graduated college and still can't find work, which means I **really** have no money.

Author's note: Yes, I'm still working on my Buffy/X-Men Crossover, The More Things Change, but I've been bingeing on KP for some reason lately and this fic wouldn't let me rest until I got it out. Should be noted that this is my first KP fic…be kind, but if you must flame, make sure they're made of green plasma. Thanks. As always, dedicated to my wonderful fiancée.

" Well, Rufus, ole buddy tonight's the night," Ron Stoppable exclaimed, checking his appearance in the bathroom mirror. His small, pink legs dangling off the bathroom counter's edge, Rufus simply rolled his eyes expressively, as if to say he'd heard it before and wasn't buying it. " Hey!" Ron cried defensively, affecting a hurt tone, " I saw that. This year's going to be different, I swear. Tonight I'm going to tell Kim just how I feel about her. It'll be perfect, the villains have been laying surprisingly low recently, so no danger of getting a hit on the website and being called off to save the world…" Rufus sent him a meaningful glance. " Ok, so no being called off to try not to screw up too badly while Kim saves the world," he amended before continuing, " And since that huge fight Kim and Mankey had a few weeks ago, she hasn't mentioned him once. I think it's safe to say he's out of the picture. What could possibly go wrong?" He gave himself a once over, straightening the navy blue tie it'd taken him nearly fifteen minutes to get perfectly tied, before stepping back for inspection. " So, what do you think?" he asked his naked companion, the nervousness in his voice clearly at conflict with the confidence he was trying to project.

Rufus scampered back from the edge of the counter to get a better look at his old friend, finally climbing out onto the faucet and sitting down again for the best vantage point. At eighteen years old, the years of training and fighting alongside Kim Possible had clearly left a mark on Ron. He'd lost the pudge that had haunted him the majority of his high school career, developing a much leaner, and toned frame, he'd also shot up a couple of inches in the past year or so and his shoulders had broadened nicely as well. And somewhere along the way he'd obviously picked up some fashion sense as well, not that it showed on a daily basis of course, but on rare occasions Ron could definitely turn heads; tonight it seemed was going to be one of those occasions. Gone was his usual ensemble of baggy khaki pants, black turtleneck and red over shirt. Tonight Ron was dressed to…well not quite the nines…but at least an eight point five. He was wearing a simple black suit that fit his lean frame well, with a white shirt that he'd actually bothered to iron, and a navy blue tie. After a few moments of serious consideration, Rufus scampered back off the faucet, and located a small jar of hair gel, pushing it to the edge of the counter.

" Oh, good call" Ron agreed, opening the gel and taking a small amount, smoothing his blond hair back in one fluid motion. " How's that?"

" Yup! Looks good" Rufus nodded energetically, giving Ron two enthusiastic thumbs up.

"Thanks Rufus" Ron said with a smile. He knew that despite the mole rat's eye rolling and disbelief he would always have his back on the important matters. Ron washed the residual hair gel from his hand and headed back out of the bathroom and down the hall into his bedroom, Rufus following quickly behind him. " Ok, Ron," he said to himself, taking a seat on his bed, " You can do it tonight. You've known KP for years, you trust her, she trusts you, there is no reason in the world why you can't just tell her that you love her…well maybe should ease her into it…let her know I like her, a lot. That should work." A sudden shifting of weight on the bed drew his attention downward to Rufus, who appeared ready to go out himself, having found a bow tie to wear. Ron smiled and lifted his little friend onto his shoulder. " Sorry buddy," he smiled apologetically, " Antonio's takes a much dimmer view on people who bring in naked mole rats than Bueno Nacho does." Rufus's head dropped dejectedly and Ron tucked a finger under his chin, bringing it back up. " Hey now, I wouldn't plan a special evening with one of my best friends and leave out the other. I picked up a grande size naco and a chimerito for you earlier; they're downstairs in the fridge for when you get hungry later. Just ask mom to pop them in the microwave for you"

Rufus immediately brightened, scurrying along Ron's shoulder and hugging his neck. " Mmmm..naco…mmmm..chimerito…thank you!" he chirped happily.

Ron laughed, " Hey, I got your back too Rufus. Besides, you were an integral part of that first mission. No anniversary celebration would be complete if one of the key players was left out, now would it?" Rufus, it seemed, was too stunned at the thought of all that Bueno Nacho-y goodness to respond. Shaking his head in amusement, at his little friend's reaction, Ron reached over to the night stand by his bed and gingerly picked up the picture frame he kept there; it was a picture of him and Kim of course, arms wrapped around each other and smiles plastered on their faces, taken at his cousins wedding reception. " Can't believe it's been five years that we've been doing this Rufus," he whispered, smiling and brushing his index finger over Kim's picture, " Five years and we're still together, going strong…maybe we're strong enough to be able to take our relationship to the next level without it being too awk-weird." Putting the picture back in it's place on the nightstand, he looked at the alarm clock next to his bed. " Only one way to find out. I told KP that I'd pick her up at 7:30…I should get going" Ron gently lifted Rufus from his perch on Ron's shoulder and set him on the bed with a nervous smile. " Wish me luck pal, I'm definitely going to need it tonight" he said.

"Good luck!" Rufus replied, once again flashing thumbs up at Ron reassuringly. Ron smiled in return and headed out the door and down the stairs. Rufus scampered to the window in time to see his old friend fire up his scooter and head down the street. He hoped that Ron would find that Kim returned the feelings he had for her tonight. He was a good kid and Kim could certainly do worse. His introspection was cut short however by a rumbling in his stomach and a grin split his mole rat features " Mmmmm…naco" he said happily before scampering out of the room and down the stairs himself.

It was getting close to 7:30 when Ron pulled up in front of the Possible residence. The very empty looking Possible residence. The family's car was gone and there were no lights on that he could see anywhere in the building. Calm down Ron he thought, fighting a sudden surge of insecurity KP wouldn't just bail on you without good cause. And if she had to bail, she'd call you beforehand. You know how polite she is about those kinds of things. She's probably just getting everything perfect for you; you stud you. Give her five more minutes Despite the upbeat tone of his thoughts, a deeply uneasy feeling settled into the pit of his stomach. " Just nerves, yea…big confession time, it's gotta be the nerves" he muttered, his eyes fixed on the Possible's front door. Five minutes seemed to take forever to pass, and when Kim hadn't come through the door, Ron's bad feeling grew steadily stronger. That's it he thought, pulling out his Kimmunicator and turning it on, breathing a sigh of relief when Wade's image appeared on the screen.

" Oh, hey Ron, looking sharp! What's up?" the young computer genius asked

" Look Wade, I'm probably being hypersensitive here, and Kim will tease me mercilessly later for it, but I was supposed to pick Kim up for our anniversary dinner at 7:30, now it's almost 7:40. Do you think you could, I dunno, maybe scan her house and see if she's there?" Ron asked, realizing that he was probably being a little short with the younger man and making a mental note to take him out to Bueno Nacho sometime to make up for it. Well…make up for it and finally meet him in person he conceded to himself.

"No problem Ron," the young man said, typing a command into his computer.

"Please and thank you" Ron said, unconsciously echoing the phrase he'd heard Kim use so many times when dealing with Wade and anyone else she asked a favor of.

Moments later a snakelike sensor extended from the Kimmunicator and oriented itself towards the Possible's house, slowly scanning across the building, " Have you tried calling?" Wade asked as the data streamed back to his computer, " She could be on the phone with Monique or something. You know how girls can be."

" No cell phone," Ron admitted coloring slightly, " Parents don't see the need for me to have one when about the only person I ever talk to is Kim and we have these anyway."

" Gotcha," Wade replied. A beep from off screen caught his attention and he frowned, " Well I've got good news and bad news for you. The good news is that she's home. According to the scan she's in her bedroom. The bad news, her kimmunicator's non-responsive. I tried calling for you. I mean it's more than in the off position, I can't even remote start it…something, or someone's disabled it."

" Thanks Wade," Ron said grimly, the uneasy feeling making it's way towards all out panic. Calm down Stoppable he ordered himself, KP could be in serious trouble. This is not the time for you to flip out . He was brought out of his thoughts by Wade's voice but he couldn't quite catch the words. " Could you repeat that Wade, I kind of missed it?" he queried.

" No prob," the boy genius answered, " I'm worried about her too. Do you want me to call any back up? I can have the Middleton police there in a matter of minutes"

" Why don't we keep that open as a plan B," Ron said, " We could be worrying about nothing here. I'm going to go in myself. If you haven't heard from me in, let's say 10 minutes, then call for back up." He suddenly wished he had any of the gadgets that he and Kim took on missions with him, however, they were all back at his house with his mission clothes. This is going to go well he thought glumly, slipping out of the suit jacket and taking off his helmet.

" You got it Ron. Good Luck" Wade said, the frown still firmly in place as the screen on the Kimmunicator went dark.

Ron slipped the device back into his back pocket and crossed the street to the Possible's residence, noticing how the entire neighborhood seemed eerily quiet as he did so. Oh, why does it always have to get quiet right before something bad happens? he wondered. Approaching the front door he could see that it was slightly ajar and had to fight his first instinct to run in, guns blazing so to speak, to Kim's rescue. Grasping the door, he pushed it open quietly and stepped into the Possible's living room, allowing his eyes to adjust to the dim light before making his way to the stairs cautiously. No signs of a fight. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing he thought darkly. Either Kim was fine and would tease him to no end for the whole stealth entry, or whoever had left the door open had been able to take Kim down without any trouble, which meant there probably wouldn't be anything he could do against them. Reaching the top of the stairs, his ears picked up on a low feminine moan distinctly coming from the direction of Kim's bedroom. " Hang on KP" he muttered determinedly, " Help is on the way". Slowly he edged his way down the hall towards Kim's room. After what seemed like forever, he reached the end of the hall and peeked around the corner to scope the situation out before rushing in. His first thought was that he was lucky that Kim had left her bedroom door wide open. Then the reality of the cause of the moan slammed into him, freezing him in place. There, on the bed was Kim Possible, and completely naked. Her back was to the door, but from her motion causing her beautiful long hair to bounce up and down along her back and the pair of legs sticking out from beneath her, it was clear just what he was seeing, even to an eighteen year old virgin. He quickly whipped his head back around the corner and slumped to the floor. " Oh KP," he whispered huskily, tears brimming at the edges of his vision. His Kim, the girl he'd been secretly in love with for years, was having sex with another man. Well…guess I waited too long he thought wiping angrily at his eyes, trying to find the strength to sneak back out and leave her clueless to the fact he'd caught her in such an intimate act. I just hope it's not… His thoughts were interrupted once again by Kim's voice.

" Oh yes, there!…Oh Josh..harder…I'm so close" she cried out.

It was too much for Ron, feeling his heart shatter in his chest. The tears began to stream down his cheeks unabated. Make up sex he realized bitterly Even though he cheated on her with Bonnie of all people, she still wants him He pushed himself to his feet and ran down the hall and back down the stairs, not caring if the couple in the bed room heard him or not. He flew out the front door, making sure it slammed shut behind him, and ran to his scooter, popping on his helmet and starting the engine up almost on instinct. " I've got to get out of here," he said, his voice raw with emotion. He wiped halfheartedly at his eyes, trying to clear them and sped off, his vision still blurry, into the night, not caring where he was going.


	2. Strange Bedfellows

Bad as she wants me to be

Chapter 2: Strange bedfellows

Author: RoguesKnight

Rating: Still MA….alcohol…language…sexual situations

Disclaimer: Still not mine. Disney owns them, I'm just having a little fun. I promise to return them, maybe only slightly worse for wear, when I'm done. Or who knows maybe they'll be a little better off. The song " Hunter Gets Captured by the Game" is from the Batman Forever Soundtrack, and as such is the property of Warner Bros.

Author's note: Trying not to just make this a smutfic, haven't written one like this before and it's commanding me to type it now. I don't have a beta, so I'm counting on you guys to let me know if over the course of this fic it seems too smutty. Granted, there'll be sex in this chapter, so if that's not your thing, you might want to avoid it, but I don't plan on making every chapter into a sex scene. Comments/flames welcome. As always, dedicated to my beautiful fiancée

An hour and a half later, after several stops to clear his eyes, he found himself in Lowerton, the bad part of Lowerton to be precise, in a dingy bar that wasn't known for carefully checking the Ids of its patrons, or checking them at all for that matter. " What's she see in him that she could never see in me?" he asked no one in particular, staring down into the mug of beer in front of him. The other patrons of the bar, mostly bikers and gang members from the looks of them, had given him a wide berth. Not so much out of fear of what he could do to them, but because they'd recognized him as Kim Possible's dopey sidekick and more than one had first hand experience of what a mad Kim Possible was like and weren't eager to find out how pissed she'd be if something happened to him. Heh, guess celebrity does have its advantages he thought morosely, picking up his mug and downing the rest of the contents before signaling to the bartender that he'd like another.

" Hey there, you might, just might, want to consider taking it easy" came an oddly familiar, and feminine voice from behind him, " I mean, you're not the brightest star in the heavens already, you might want to hang on to a brain cell or two…if you had that many to begin with."

Ron swiveled quickly on the barstool to face the voice, nearly falling off in the process. The only thing stopping him from meeting the floor was a pair of very strong, yet soft, pale green hands on his shoulders, pushing him back up into the stool. Hmmm…green…that should mean something…who do I know who has green skin? He pondered. Thinking it over, he allowed his eyes to follow the arms back up and finally considered the face of his savior. The first thing he noticed, other than the fact that her face too was a pale green, was her lips, covered in black lipstick and smirking with what seemed to be equal parts amusement and disdain. Where have I seen that look before? he wondered Well, other than on Kim. Kim. Of course he just had to think of her again, didn't he? The remnants of the shards of his heart shattered once again into even smaller pieces and once again tears threatened to overcome him. The look on the woman's face quickly slid from amused to annoyed and her grip on his shoulders tightened, her fingers digging in painfully. Fighting the tears back, he brought his eyes finally to hers, noting that they were, big surprise, green. Long black hair spilled from her head and cascaded around her shoulders. Everything about her screamed that he knew her, but his alcohol addled mind just couldn't put it's finger on why. The sound of a fresh mug of beer being placed on the counter behind him drew his attention back to the bar. " Hey, babe, I know the ladies love the Ron man, but how about letting me get my drink, then we can party." He said, as suavely as he could in his current state, trying to turn back around to grab his beer.

A dark fire blazed to life in her green eyes, and she pinned him forcibly in place with one hand, the other raising off of his right shoulder and sparking to life with what appeared to be actual green fire. She pointed a delicate finger at the mug on the bar and a bolt of green energy leapt out, destroying it and sending shards of glass everywhere. " How many has he had John?" she asked the bartender, her voice clearly stating that she wanted a straight answer as quickly as possible.

Uncowed, the stocky, balding man behind the bar pulled out a fire extinguisher and quickly sprayed down the flaming remnants of the drink. " Him?" he asked with a chuckle, " That was going to be his second Sheena, the kid must be a real lightweight."

" Sheena?" Ron asked, finally dragging his eyes away from where his drink had exploded, " Oh, no my friend," he said twisting to face the bartender, " Her name's not Sheena, it's Shego." The reality of just who was pinning him to the barstool set in and the color drained from his face and he began to squirm wildly, if ineffectively, in an attempt to get away.

Sheena sighed, pressing him even more firmly to the stool, otherwise ignoring his panic and kept her steely gaze on the bartender, " He's cut off." She said coldly, raising a still glowing hand to ward off objection, " I don't care what your personal policies are here. He's underage for one thing. For another, this is Kim Possible's buffoon. How do you think she'd react if something happened to him while drunk and she found out where he got the alcohol? You'd be lucky if you just lost your liquor license. So, this one's cut off, clear?" The bartender nodded reluctantly and Sheena extinguished her hand before reaching into Ron's pants pocket and removing his wallet.

" Hey!" Ron exclaimed, " I'm being robbed…someone call the police!" The only response he got was laughter from the other patrons of the bar and an increasingly irritated glare from the woman holding him in place.

Sheena flipped the wallet open and deftly plucked a ten from it, holding it out to the bartender who quickly took it. " Keep the change," she said easily, shutting the wallet and sliding it back into Ron's pocket. " It should more than cover the cheap ass glasses you use here" she added with a smirk. Grabbing Ron's arm tightly, she yanked him off the barstool and started to drag him across the bar towards a darkened booth. Oh, Kimmie's ass is getting kicked extra hard the next time we meet. She swore, half wondering why she was bothering to keep the buffoon out of further trouble anyway. Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt him resisting her pull and turning, she saw that he was leaning away from her, trying to dig his feet in to the floor for extra resistance. Ok She thought, a feral grin sliding across her face and causing him to struggle harder You want to want free? I'll let you go. She released his arm and tried not to laugh, too loudly anyway, as Ron tripped over his own feet in his sudden freedom and stumbled into a wall, his head connecting solidly. " Klutz," she muttered, storming over to him and standing in front of him, hands on hips.

" Shego?" He asked timidly, trying to make himself as small as possible while hugging the wall, " What are you doing here? And, what do you want with me?"

She sighed in exasperation, staring him in the eyes, " First of all, do you see a green and black jumpsuit anywhere on me?" She waited as his eyes traveled up and down her body, taking in the fact that she was clad in a short black leather skirt, black high heels, and a green spaghetti tank top with the words sexy devil, stretched across her ample chest. As his eyes made a second sweep over her body, she took a moment to observe him. The suit and tie, even rumpled as they were now, clearly marked him as an outsider and had been what had caught her attention when she walked in to the bar. Not, bad She thought, The buffoon's starting to fill out nicely. Who knew that years of running like a coward actually made for a decent work out? She quickly clamped down on the thought, and cleared her throat when she realized his eyes had stopped on her breasts. " Eyes up here Stoppable," she growled, " I'll ask again. Jumpsuit anywhere?" He shook his head quickly. " That's right. I'm off duty, so it's Sheena, not Shego. Unlike you and Kimmie, I know how to have a secret identity. Which, unless you want your ass kicked as hard as I kick Kimmie's will remain a secret. Got it?" He nodded enthusiastically that he did. " Good. Now, as for what I was doing here, I was going to relax and enjoy my night off, maybe have a drink or two. Now it looks like I'm going to baby-sit you until you decide to leave or Kim comes looking for you. Whichever comes first. And, there isn't anything I really wanted with you. I'm not being paid to harass you, but if it got out you got my favorite bar closed down because you wanted a drink, I'd be really pissed."

Ron seemed to take in everything she said before pushing away from the wall angrily, and brushing past her, heading towards the same booth Shego had been aiming for. Sheena, huh? Pretty name he thought absently as he slid into a seat. Well aware that she was following him. Moments later she slid into the seat across from him, lazily stretching out and leaning against the wall, not even looking in his direction. " I'm not a baby, you know. So I don't need a babysitter. Go, have your drinks. I'll be fine. Hell, pick up some other guy and take him home for all I care. You already said you didn't want anything to do with me. Can't say that I blame you, after all we can't all be Kim, can we? Some of us have to be the ones that nobody wants." He said bitterly

In spite of herself, Sheena was interested, " Awww, did you and miss perfect have a fight?" she sneered sarcastically, tossing a quick glance in his direction, and taking in his appearance again, " Oh! I know, you were going to profess your undying love for her and she gave you the just friends speech, didn't she?" She grinned, needling the buffoon was actually more fun when she was sober.

Ron banged his head against the table and left it there. " I wish she gave me the just friends speech," he said dejectedly, " That would have at least left part of my heart intact."

Sheena just stared at him for a moment, stunned by the amount of pain he seemed to be experiencing Boy's really hurting. I've seen him take beatings that wouldn't affect him like this. Never thought it would be Kimmie to be the one to finally break him though Almost unconsciously, her hand slid across the table and gently lifted his head so she could see his face, which was sporting fresh tear tracks. What the hell am I doing? She wondered I don't do gentle with my friends…ok so I don't really have any "friends" per se, but I sure as hell don't do gentle with my enemies What came out of her mouth however was, " So what did happen?" He just stared at her, tears continuing to roll down his cheeks, saying nothing. " Please, I'd like to know…Ron" She tried again, all the while cursing herself for letting him affect her like this.

" You, you actually remember my name" He said in awe, wiping at his eyes. Sheena looked away, obviously uncomfortable with the fact that he'd noticed. " You really want to know what happened?" He caught her barely perceptible nod. " Well, you weren't far off. I was going to tell her how I felt about her at dinner tonight. It's the five year anniversary of our first mission, and it's kinda tradition that we go out to celebrate it, ya know?" She nodded for him to continue. " Well…long story short… when I went to pick her up I caught her having sex with someone she swore she was over. I took off, and ended up here. Trying to forget tonight ever happened, until someone, who shall remain nameless, felt she had to interfere."

Sheena slowly let it all sink in Damn, I always thought Kimmie had the potential to be a bitch, but I didn't know how big a bitch she really was. Once again she found herself wanting to comfort the young man across from her as her hand slid across the table and captured one of his. I'm only doing this to get information. It's not like I actually care if the buffoon got his heart broken tonight. Who knows…maybe I can use this to my advantage, split up team Possible or something Somehow the thoughts weren't all that convincing. " I'm sorry buffo…Ron. That must have really hurt."

Ron pulled his hand away angrily, " I don't need your pity, _Sheena_," he said mockingly, " I've got more than enough of my own, thank you very much. And you know, I don't feel like talking about it anymore. I feel like…dancing…so if you'll excuse me" He pushed himself out of the seat and made his way over to the dance floor on the opposite side of the bar and began gyrating wildly to the up tempo music blaring from a jukebox in the corner.

Sheena watched him for a few moment in stunned silence. He calls that dancing? Still…the boy has a nice body. No real coordination, or rhythm, but lots of potential there. Maybe if he had the right teacher Once again she forced those thoughts down, and studiously ignored the growing heat traveling throughout her body. " Ok," she muttered to herself, " So it's been a while since I've gotten any action. That's all it is. Hormones, everybody's got them, doesn't mean I have to behave like some hormone crazed teenager." She continued to watch Ron's seemingly random gyrations, until a slower song, which she recognized as " The Hunter gets Captured by the game", began to play. His face was towards her for the briefest of moments, and the pain etched across his features as the lyrics floated through the air stole her breath. Before she knew what she was doing she was out of her seat and headed for Ron, who seemed rooted to the floor.

Ron turned to face the jukebox, unaware of Sheena's approach, glaring daggers at the offending machine. What next? Something by the Monkees? he shuddered, it was just twisted and wrong that a group actually named themselves after monkeys. His attention was broken by the feeling of arms draping themselves around his neck. Looking down, he found himself staring into Shego's beautiful green eyes. Since when have I thought that Shego had beautiful eyes he wondered as his arms snaked their way around her waist and pulled her to him, seemingly of their own volition. " Shego?" he asked uncertainly.

" Shhh," she responded with a surprisingly genuine smile, looking back up at him. When the hell did he get so tall? " No questions", she said simply, " Just dance with me. And I told you, it's Sheena. Don't make me burn it into your forehead." The quick loss of color from Ron's face at the casually implied threat made Sheena smile even more, and she had to fight the urge to rest her face on his chest. He's kind of cute when he's terrified of me The thought was quickly followed by another Snap out of it girl! Ron Stoppable is not cute…he's Kimmie's lapdog. Just use him and dump his sorry ass somewhere. Her normally pale face colored slightly at the thought of just how she might use him and she turned in his arms to keep him from noticing it. Though she would never admit it, she felt safer than she had in a long time wrapped up in Stoppable's arms

Ron was stunned that Shego, of all people, was not only being nice to him when he'd told her things she could use to crush him, but was actually dancing with him. What next? Bonnie calling me and asking me on a date? He shuddered at the thought; and then again a moment later when he felt Shego's leather clad ass grinding back into a particularly sensitive area that was beginning to respond to the attention. Please, god, don't let her notice. I'm rather attached to it and wouldn't want her to remove it he prayed silently. As more blood continued southward to a certain part of his anatomy, he had the distinct feeling that his prayer would go unanswered.

Sheena's eyes widened as she felt Ron's response to her grinding and a slow, seductive smile crept across her face. Well well, his heart may be broken, but it seems that his other parts are working just fine She let a low moan escape her lips before turning back around to face him, a certain hunger clearly written on her face and in her eyes. She grinned as she felt him stiffen even more against her and slid her hands up to the back of his head, pulling him down into a passionate kiss.

Once the initial shock wore off, Ron found himself kissing her back, pulling her as close as he could, as if remembering the feel of her body would erase the memory Kim's had left each and every time she'd hugged him. Whoa…easy he thought This is Shego you're kissing…this can't be a good thing…no matter how good a kisser she is, or how nice it feels to hold her like this…she's evil. What would Kim think? the last thought struck him powerfully, and he pushed Shego away. " I'm sorry …Sheena" he managed to choke out " I…I have to go…" Without another word he fled out the door, hoping to find that his scooter was still where he'd parked it.

Sheena stood on the floor for a moment in pure confusion, raising a hand to her lips and staring at the door, still swinging in the wake of Ron's hasty departure. He pushed me away? She fumed I'm the one who's supposed to reject him. She began to head after him, determined to make him pay for the humiliation of being stranded on the floor like that when she was being uncharacteristically nice to him. It was both of her hands suddenly igniting that made her pause and think. Maybe I pushed things a little quickly…I mean, maybe it was a little sudden to kiss him like that after he's had his heart broken by Kimmie…after all…I am evil. Can't let hormones get in the way of a perfectly good plan to drive Stoppable and Possible apart permanently. And if I can get my own needs met in the process… As she neared the door, she took a deep breath and extinguished her hands. Exiting the bar she saw that he'd fallen to his knees in the middle of the parking lot and was just staring up at the sky, everything in his body language suggesting abject defeat. She shook her head slowly in sympathy Poor guy just can't catch a break. Probably doesn't have any clue of just how lucky he's going to get tonight

Ron groaned, hearing the staccato tapping of heels approaching from behind him. Great, just great…she's going to kill me now. Can't say I'm really surprised. Saw Kim having sex, Shego was actually nice to me, hell, she kissed me, and my scooter's been stolen. Should have known I was witnessing signs that the end, or my end at least, was near Turning around to face her, he was surprised to see that she didn't look remotely angry about him running out like that. In fact she looked almost, sympathetic. Had he fallen into an alternate universe without anyone telling him? " Shego…I mean, Sheena…I'm sorry about flipping out on you back there," he said quickly, " I was just surprised…it wasn't that you aren't a good kisser or anything…I mean you're really good, surprisingly good…not that you shouldn't be …I mean you're a beautiful woman, I'm sure there are lots of guys who've kissed you…which isn't to say you're a slut….I'm shutting up now" He squeezed his eyes closed tightly and slapped both hands over his mouth as if it could negate his babbling.

He thinks I'm beautiful? Sheena thought, startled to feel butterflies in her stomach at the idea that someone could call her beautiful without being threatened into it. Focus Shego she commanded herself. Shaking off the sudden nervousness she felt, she smiled. " It's ok Ron. You've obviously been having a hell of a night. And I'm guessing someone stole your scooter too?" He nodded silently, hands still clasped over his mouth, but cautiously opening his eyes. " How about I give you a ride?" She said suggestively. Ooh, that was bad girl she chided herself, trying not to laugh as the innuendo registered in the younger man's mind, widening his eyes. Making sure he was watching, she carefully reached into her shirt between her breasts and removed a small black remote control. She pressed a large red button on the control, and what appeared to have been simply empty parking spaces at the edge of the lot shimmered away to reveal a sleek green hover craft. Another button and a hatchway opened and lowered a ramp. " Coming," she asked with a smirk and raised eyebrow. Without waiting for a response she headed for the ship, putting an extra bit of sexy sway into her hips, just in case he was watching. Which, of course, she knew he was.

" Oh, I hope I don't end up regretting this," Ron muttered, his eyes glued to her hips as she walked away. Following her in almost a hypnotic trance a thought popped unbidden across his mind I have never been so happy that she wears tight clothing before Thrilled that she couldn't read his mind, he picked up the pace and managed to make it up the ramp just as it was beginning to retract into the ship. He saw Sheena lounging at the controls, an innocent yet sensual smile playing across her lips, and he gulped. Man, I hope this isn't a trap. KP would never leave me alone if thinking with my penis got me captured. He quickly shunted all thoughts of Kim to the side and made his way to the empty co-pilot's seat next to Sheena.

" Took you long enough," she said casually, not looking at him as she fired up the engines and began maneuvering the craft towards their destination. " Almost thought you weren't going to join me"

Join her? Ron thought, slightly panicked Oh god, she wants to convert me to the dark side…although, she's much sexier than Darth Vader…might not be soo bad He considered sharing the observation, but decided against it in the sake of not being jettisoned at god only knew how many feet above the ground. " Sorry, must have pulled something while we were dancing" he lied lamely.

"I'm sure," she smirked, letting her gaze slide to his pants where there was still quite a bulge, " Maybe I can give you a hand with your injury later". It took all her will power not to laugh as his entire head turned beet red and he focused on staring out the opposite window, not saying a word.

Fifteen minutes after leaving the bar's parking lot, the ship set down outside a small house, far from even the outskirts of Lowerton. Ron, of course, knew the general tri-cities area, but for the life of him couldn't figure out where he was now. " Ummm…Sheena…this isn't my house, hell, this isn't anywhere near Middleton as far as I can tell" he said nervously, the thought that he'd stumbled into a trap thanks to his raging hormones flashing to the forefront of his mind once again. He turned towards the pilot's seat only to find it empty. The sound of the hatchway opening drew his eyes back to the back of the ship, where he could see Sheena leaning casually against it. " Mind telling me where we are?" he asked hopefully.

"My house" she said with a predatory smile and a wink, " I offered you a ride, I never said where. I'll be waiting." With a toss of her raven hair, she descended the ramp and began making her way towards the small house.

Ron sat in the co-pilot's seat for what seemed like an eternity as her words and their implication sunk in. " Shego has her own house?…huh…I always figured that she just stayed with Drakken." He clambered out of the seat and hurried after her, curious to see just what her home looked like from the inside. Yea, I'm sure that's why you're following a very seductive Shego into her home, you want to see how she decorates he thought derisively. He made his way onto the front porch, noting that the building itself seemed to be well kept up for being out in the middle of nowhere, and taking a deep breath he walked in the open door, closing it gently behind him before allowing himself to take a look around. Unlike any of Drakken's lairs, the little building had a homey feel to it which surprised him. The walls were painted wildly, as if Jackson Pollack had limited himself to the colors black and green, but they somehow fit what he'd always considered to be Shego's style and personality. It was far from being lavishly decorated and yet, equally far from being Spartan. Peering through a nearby doorway he could see what was obviously a living room, a large bank of computers sat off in one corner, nearby sat a large plasma screen TV with a cable box up top. The far wall held a large and impressive stone fire place, and a doorframe that opened into a very modern looking kitchen. Note to self he thought pulling his head back through the doorway don't ask how much of this stuff is stolen .

As if she'd read his mind, Sheena's voice came floating down from a room at the far end of the hallway he was standing in, " In case you're wondering Stoppable, no I haven't stolen any of the things here so don't worry about calling the cops and ratting me out. Drakken pays me extraordinarily well for my services, and the name Sheena Goh doesn't have any criminal charges associated with it."

As Ron started down the hall towards the voice, he was struck with a sudden realization. Sheena Goh…Shego. I wonder if that's her real name. But even if it's not, does that even matter? She's trusted me with showing me her home, telling me an alias that she goes by…Oh man I hope this isn't a trap. Deciding there was only one way to find out he entered the room the voice came from, only to stop dead in his tracks. It was her bedroom. I shouldn't be surprised, and yet, somehow I am. She was seated on the edge of what appeared to be a solid oak four post bed taking off her heels and stretching her feet and toes.

" Damn that feels so much better," she said, smiling at him, " Guess there's a reason they're called fuck me heels and not wear them all the time heels, huh? She patted the bed next to her " Come on, I won't bite…unless you want me to" Wicked amusement danced in her eyes as he cautiously made his way to the bed and sat down. " Relax Ron, make yourself at home." She said, putting a hand over his gently. " Look, right now there is no need to be Ron Stoppable, sidekick and best friend of Kim "I can do anything" Possible, and Shego, supervillaness in her own right, but who chooses to work for the imbecilic Dr. Drakken for the easy money. We can just be Ron and Sheena here. Just two people looking to be a little less lonely." She squeezed his hand softly, looking into his eyes. Beautiful brown eyes She thought almost wistfully, feeling like the shy teenager she had never been growing up. So trusting, even though we work on opposite sides of the law, it's almost a shame that I'm just doing this to split him and Possible up for good " I'll be right back Ron, I'm going to slip into something more comfortable" She stood up and walked through a door opposite the bed into the adjoining bathroom, the whole way trying to convince herself that the _only_ reason she was doing it was to split up team Possible, and not doing a very good job of it.

Hearing the bathroom door close, Ron let out a deep and shaky sigh, knowing full well what Shego was offering, and wondering if he was ready to go through with it. He lay back on the surprisingly soft bed, only to sit back up when he felt something dig into his back. Sitting up, he pulled the Kimmunicator from his back pocket and regarded it silently. Kim sure as hell wouldn't approve he thought But then, since when has Kim ever cared if I approved of what she did, or who she dated? His mind flashed involuntarily back to what he'd seen in the Possible's house earlier that night and his hands tightened on the device firmly enough to almost crack the plastic casing. What business of hers is it who I choose to be with? She certainly didn't ask me if I cared if she slept with Monkey boy. So screw what Kim would say. He quickly flipped the small device over and pried open the back, disconnecting the power source before putting it back in his pocket. " Well, she said to make myself at home," he muttered, kicking off his shoes and stretching out fully on the bed. The bathroom door opening drew his attention in that direction and what he saw caused his jaw to drop as a certain other body part began to rise. There, framed in the doorway, was Shego, completely naked.

" Like what you see?" She asked casually, walking towards the bed and swaying her hips seductively. Ron simply stared at her with glassy eyes. " I'll take that as a yes." She whispered climbing up onto the bed and crawling towards him in a catlike fashion. Ron looked like he'd finally pulled enough of his brain cells together to form a coherent sentence but Sheena silenced him with a finger against his lips. " Don't think Ron, just respond." Her finger was quickly replaced by her lips, her tongue brushing against his lipsseeking entrance to his mouth as she laid beside him.

Recovering from the shock of a very naked Shego, he still had trouble thinking of her as Sheena, despite being reminded numerous times, kissing him, Ron opened his mouth and moaned, feeling her tongue caress his. He reached out and drew her close to him, his hands sliding over her smooth and surprisingly soft skin, occasionally getting his fingers caught in her beautiful, long hair as it spilled around them. " Wait," he managed to get out breathlessly, breaking the kiss, " I want to look at you for a moment." Pushing away reluctantly from her enticing body, he propped himself up on one elbow and looked at her, trying to commit every detail to memory. Her beautiful green eyes, held something he'd never seen before from Shego, it wasn't lust. It looked almost like uncertainty, as if she had something to be shy about. Don't know what it could possibly be he thought, letting his eyes trail downward. Not surprisingly every inch of her skin was green, even her nipples, which seemed to be slightly darker as they poked out proudly on her large, pale breasts. From the corner of his eye, he saw her duck her head letting her raven hair hide her face, and it suddenly dawned on him that perhaps she didn't like how she looked. I'll just have to remedy that . Letting his eyes trail lower he wasn't at all surprised how toned she was, but it did surprise him just how fragile she could appear, like he could actually hurt her when he'd seen just how lethal she could be in combat. " Sheena?" he whispered, trying to get her attention. She kept her face hidden behind her hair and didn't answer. Ok, plan B he thought with a wicked smile of his own. Leaning close, he gently took a nipple into his mouth grazing it with his teeth and drawing a moan from her lips. He repeated the process with her other nipple and then lifted his head to see her looking at him, something close to surprise in her emerald eyes. " I just wanted you to know how beautiful you are, just the way you are." She opened her mouth to argue the point only to have Ron claim her lips with his own, once again drawing her body close to his"

Damn Sheena thought, trying to keep tears from her eyes as the sincerity of his words touched something deep in her heart Kimmie hasn't jumped him in the entire time she's known him? She felt his erection press against her hips through his pants and she moaned into his mouth Her loss She smiled and broke the kiss slowly. " Why don't you show me how beautiful you think I am Ron?" she asked, nibbling on his earlobe and earning a moan herself.

Ron smiled and dropped another quick kiss on her lips. He then lowered his lips to her neck, sucking on the pale skin gently, occasionally flicking his tongue against it, and let his hands caress her body, causing her to writhe next to him. He ran a hand slowly between her legs, stopping just short of her opening, and caressed her thigh, drawing lazy circles with his finger, making her moan and buck her hips.

" Touch me, Ron, damn it, touch me" she moaned, her hands grasping the bed sheets and twisting in them.

" Not yet" he smiled, bringing his hands up to cup her supple breasts, brushing his fingers over her nipples teasingly, making them tighten further and making her moan. Slowly he began to kiss down her neck, trailing soft kisses down across her chest and between her breasts as his hands continued to caress them, moving down until he was situated between her legs. He looked up, to see her staring back at him, an intense hunger burning in her eyes.

"Please" She whispered.

It was all the encouragement he needed, lowering his mouth to her opening and gently probing her with his tongue. The scent was musky, but the taste wasn't at all unpleasant. And judging from how her moans had changed to screams, Ron guessed the feelings weren't all that unpleasant either. On a whim, he buried his face into her, sticking his tongue as far as it could go and pinched both of her nipples at the same time. The result was her legs clamping against the sides of his head and pushing up as she arched off the bed, screaming his name. Fortunately before breathing became an issue her legs released and she collapsed back onto the bed, breathing heavily, and beckoning him upwards with a shaky finger.

" That was incredible" She whispered, pulling him into a deep kiss. Finally, she pulled back from the kiss, looked into his eyes, and saw something reflected there that she wasn't ready to ask about. Instead, she pushed him over onto his back and climbed on top of him shakily, smiling. " Trust me?" She asked, not really expecting the nod that he responded with. It, and what she saw in his eyes, gave her pause. He really does trust me…I should stop now…kick him out. Tell him I changed my mind or something. I don't want to hurt him… the thought sent shockwaves through her entire being as she realized that she really didn't want to hurt him, not like this. She looked down, letting her dark hair hide her face so he wouldn't see the shame in her eyes over her plan of using such an intimate act to break team Possible. But it'd hurt him even more to send him away, wouldn't it a sinister side of her argued, after all, he's been rejected by one woman tonight already…do you really want to add to that?

Ron apparently took her lack of action for hesitation, " Sheena, I don't care if tomorrow you want to go back to being bitter enemies, like you said, tonight isn't about Shego and Ron Stoppable. Tonight, we're just two people, and I trust you."

Sheena blinked back tears and offered him a wicked smile in response, igniting a hand with glowing green plasma, and directing a beam to carefully cut away all of the buttons on his shirt and pants before extinguishing it again. " Good to know" she smirked, her voice husky with emotion and barely suppressed need. In a sudden motion she tore the remnants of his shirt away before removing what was left of his pants as well to reveal white boxers with blue polka dots and a very noticeable tent effect. He's much better looking than I thought she mused, straddling him just above the tent and grinning when he moaned in response. " You know… I should give you a taste of the torture you gave me with all that teasing" she purred, running pale hands across his abs and chest, scratching him lightly and watching as he writhed below her.

" You wouldn't…you're not that evil…you can't be" Ron said, biting back a moan as her fingers scraped down his chest again, raising tiny welts as they went.

Sheena grinned, enjoying his torment, " You seem to forget who you're talking to. I am that evil, and I would…if I didn't need you so damn much right now" With that, she swept back his boxers, and gradually lowered herself onto his very erect penis, moaning and purring with contentment as it filled her. " Be grateful that I've never been that good at delayed gratification" she moaned, lowering herself down onto his chest and claiming his lips with hers.

Ron moaned softly, amazed at the sensations coursing through his body as he pressed into her, but even more amazed that his entire focus was on his partner alone. Part of him had gone into it just to get back at Kim in some way, but from the moment he'd seen how fragile and beautiful Shego could be, all he could think about was her. Pulling back from the kiss he smiled and reached up to cup her cheek tenderly as their bodies moved in unison. And they say that the anticipation of something is better than actually having it he thought wryly. He'd waited all his life for Kim to notice him, and yet somehow he knew that what he was sharing with Shego, Sheena, whatever she wanted to call herself was far beyond what he could have found with Kim, and completely unexpected. He opened his mouth, feeling as if he should say something, but not sure what.

" If one mushy or romantic idea passes through those lips of yours Stoppable…" Sheena threatened, growling slightly and grinding harder down onto him, " Ok…so I don't have a threat…but just take me…please, don't worry about words…" She let out a sudden cry of surprise and pleasure as Ron flipped them over and picked up the tempo. " God, yes," she gasped, " Don't stop!"

Ron groaned, feeling a familiar pressure building in his body, and drove into her harder and faster, determined to send her over the edge before going over himself. Ron lowered himself on to her, thrusting in deeper and kissing her passionately. Suddenly he felt her tighten around him in a series of spasms, that drove him over the edge into his own climax. Feeling as if all his energy left him at the same time, he lay on top of her, their bodies still connected, kissing her gently. When Sheena finally pulled away, he could have sworn he saw a single tear escape her right eye. " You ok?" he asked, gently caressing her cheek as more tears swam to the front of her eyes. He'd seen her take some of Kim's hardest kicks without ever shedding a tear, this was definitely new.

" Yea," she said, wrapping her arms around him with a surprising need, " Just hold me for a while, ok?" Feeling Ron's arms slip around her back, Sheena laid her head against his chest. Damn She thought bitterly I can't start caring about him. I can't. Maybe…no, I can't retire from evil, I'd be arrested the first time anyone pulled their head out of their ass long enough to realize Sheena Goh and Shego were one and the same. The only thing I can do is go with the plan to split team Stoppable up and hope that if Drakken and I manage to take over the world, Ron can forgive me for what I had to do. Closing her eyes and pressing her face more firmly against his chest, she let the tears finally fall because she knew from the way that he'd made love, not had sex, with her that Ron was sensitive enough that her betrayal would cut him to the core. I didn't count on him accepting me for who I am…I never meant to care for him

Feeling the flow of tears on his chest, Ron simply pulled Sheena closer, rubbing her back softly. " Whatever it is, it'll be ok, I promise" he whispered, not sure how he'd make good on the promise, but knowing that he didn't want to fail. He'd seen something in Shego's eyes tonight that he'd never seen when any woman looked at him before, he didn't want to lose that. He kissed the top of her head softly and continued to rub her back, making soothing sounds until they both fell asleep.


	3. Waking up with the enemy

Bad as she wants me to be

Chapter 3: Waking up with the enemy

Disclaimer: Well, since I haven't been set upon by the Mouse's legal team yet (Team Incomprehensible), I'm going to go with the assumption that the standard disclaimer's been enough to satisfy them. So, once again. Not mine, so very not mine as to make me jealous in fact, of the folks at Disney who own Kim, Ron, Shego, et al.

Author's Note: Wow! Way more reviews than I expected at this point. And surprisingly no flames, plasma based or otherwise. So a big thank you goes out to, in no particular order, eckles, mago,gargoylesama,Bucky-O-Hair,chris-warner876, MatthewC, SilverRyu,BrianDarksoul,vega, Sand Lord, Scotty Boi, and rabid squirrel. Ok, so I guess that is actually the order in which they arrived. You guys rock hard! So, for the first time I can say it with this fic…dedicated to my reviewers, and as always, my beautiful fiancée. Now on to the story

A low rumble of thunder pulled Ron from the depths of sleep and he rubbed at his eyes groggily before taking in the green and black walls of the room and wondering briefly just where the hell he was, because he sure as hell wasn't at home in his bed. A soft snore from beside him drew his eyes to the pale green woman with raven hair and the events of the previous evening came rushing back to him. I can't believe it he thought, his eyes locked on the back of the sleeping woman I actually had sex…with Shego…and I'm still alive. Boo-yah! Carefully, he edged towards the side of the bed, trying not to wake her. As he finally made it off, she suddenly turned towards him and he froze in place, trying not to even breathe too hard. Fortunately her eyes stayed shut, and he smiled, happy to see that she'd finally settled into uninterrupted sleep, or at least he hoped so. Throughout the night, she'd slept fitfully, waking up every couple of hours; which meant he'd woken up every couple of hours as well and tried to sooth her back to sleep. Whatever had been disturbing her hadn't been something she'd been willing to discuss, which really hadn't come as a surprise. It was Shego after all. She'll talk when she's ready he thought, watching her sleep with a wistful smile and fighting the urge to reach out and run his fingers through her hair Or…maybe she won't. I mean, it's not like we're in a relationship or anything…well not a healthy one. There's just something wrong about sleeping with your enemy . His musings were interrupted by a familiar pressure in his bladder and he crept off to the bathroom.

When he returned, Shego was still, thankfully, asleep in almost the same position he'd left her, though she'd begun to drool a little. Hmmm…probably best not to mention that little foible to her when she wakes up he mused, chuckling quietly to himself. Kim had punched him in the shoulder, none too lightly, the last time he'd mentioned it to her after she fell asleep on his shoulder on the way home following a mission. He had the distinct feeling that Shego wouldn't stop at just one punch, or limit herself to his shoulder. Ron groaned inwardly, biting his lower lip. Great, Stoppable, just great. You manage to make it through the entire night without so much as a dream about Kim, and you just had to go and start thinking about her again. There goes getting back to sleep He let his eyes scan the room, everywhere but the oh so comfortable bed, and its beautiful occupant, searching for something, anything that could take his mind off of the subject of his best friend. It was a short search. Aside from the bed, there was little else in the room. No books or knick-knacks that could give him something to do or any insight into Shego's life when she wasn't committing crimes, and not at all surprisingly, there were no pictures on the walls. Beside the bed was a small nightstand, holding only an alarm clock reading 8:00 a.m. Well…it is a Saturday, and I'm sure she wouldn't want me to wake her up this early just to talk… he thought, walking over to what was left of his clothes and slipping his boxers on. Other alternatives to talking tried making their way into his consciousness and he quickly brushed the thoughts aside. If I didn't think it would wake her up, I'd take the cold shower I so obviously need right now Stealing one last longing look at Shego's sleeping form, he snuck out of the bedroom.

Padding quietly down the hall, Ron slipped into the living room, taking full advantage of the opportunity to explore while Shego slept. Forcing himself not to turn on the large plasma screen TV and search for reruns of "The Fearless Ferret" like he normally did on Saturdays, he ventured further into the room, taking note of a dark green leather sofa pushed up against the same wall as the TV, next to which was a rather old looking bookcase. Ok he thought, gazing at the couch critically It may be comfy, but come on, green? She couldn't go with a black one? It'd have still fit the whole motif. And how does she watch TV like that? Walking in front of the bookcase, his eyes lit up. Bingo! A window into the mystery that is Shego he thought triumphantly as he perused the shelf. " Let's see Sun Tsu's " The Art of War", big surprise there, Machiavelli's "The Prince"…a biography of Richard Nixon…doesn't she read anything normal?" he wondered aloud. The second shelf held more of the same, philosophical treatises, biographies of famous criminals, books on major historical battles, a few on the sociology and psychology of criminal minds. It was the bottom shelf however that yielded the biggest surprises. Comprised of an equal amount of DVDs and fiction works, it was a ray of light illuminating the Sheena part of Shego's life. " Hmmm…pilates, so that's how she stays in such good shape. I'd have pegged her as the Tai Bo type," he mused pulling out a work out DVD curiously before putting it back. Maybe that's why the couch isn't in front of the TV, gives her more work out room. Pulling a novel from the shelf, he almost dropped it when he realized it was a cheesy romance. "Ok, there are some things I'm just not ready to know about her." He muttered, hurriedly shoving the book back into place.

A sudden crack of thunder drew his attention to the room's only window, just to the left of the front door and he wandered over, shuddering when he saw just how hard the rain was coming down. Oh, I am so glad she gave me a lift and I didn't have to ride my scooter here. That would have sucked…had it not been stolen anyway. Hope she'll let me stay at least until the rain stops. Considering how he long she'd put up with him in her home of course led to thoughts of going home and all the drama that would entail. Later, Ron he ordered himself, You'll cross that bridge when you come to it Standing in the hall, he was torn by two impulses: one to head back into the bedroom and curl back around Shego's soft body for as long as she'd let him; the other to explore the kitchen he had a glimpsed the night before and see just what kinds of appliances she had in there. It was a no-brainer really, indulging his culinary curiosity would always win out over risking waking a woman known for her violent tendencies.

Entering the kitchen, Ron had to use both hands just to keep his jaw from hitting the floor. To say that it was a marvel of modern efficiency would be an understatement. A stainless steel island that stretched almost entire length of the room, which judging by the two matching stainless steel bar stools obviously doubled as a dining room table, dominated the center of the room. Hanging above the center of the island, well out of the range where anyone would bump their heads was a rack containing champagne flutes and wine and margarita glasses, all of which were, no surprise, green. On closer inspection, he discovered that along the right side, under the lip of the island were spring loaded drawers that popped out at the slightest press for easy access to any needed utensil at a moment's notice. The counters and cabinets of the room were made of the same stainless steel as the island, and a cursory inspection revealed that the cabinets too operated on the spring loaded system as the drawers. Probably not the best system in the world Ron considered, ducking quickly to avoid being smacked in the head by a swiftly moving door Still, it is pretty cool He carefully closed the cabinet and continued exploring the room. The very end of the counter running along the left wall was occupied by a dishwasher, an oven, and a huge refrigerator/freezer with an ice and chilled water dispenser built into the door. Once again giving in to his curiosity, Ron opened the refrigerator and stood in awe, the entire second shelf was devoted solely to cheese. I'm in love! He thought giddily. Someone other than himself or Rufus obviously understood the importance of cheese. He shut the door with a groan, slumping against it. " Aw man, Rufus…he's probably worried sick since about me…maybe I can convince Sheena to let me give Wade a call on the Kimmunicator and ask him to check up on Rufus for me. I should get him some apology Bueno Nacho on the way home too" he sighed. Course, I'm not sure when I'll be on my way home. Am I a guest or a prisoner/sex toy?

A rumble from his stomach at the mention of food reminded him acutely that he hadn't eaten in more than twelve hours and that he did his best thinking on a full stomach. Bet Sheena, Shego, whomever she wants to be, wouldn't mind being woken up by breakfast in bed either He smiled That is if she can restrain the urge to kill me long enough to realize I have food for her. A brief foray into the cabinets yielded what he was looking for; an unopened box of pancake/waffle mix, maple syrup, a Belgian waffle maker, and a large bowl to mix the batter in. A few moments later he'd not only whipped up two short stacks of waffles, but also got them onto plates and even found, surprisingly, an actual tray for breakfast in bed to be served upon. Hmmm…either I'm not the first guy she's had still here in the morning, or she really likes to be comfortable when she eats. He quickly put the question of how frequently she had male company out of his mind, and rinsed off the dishes in the rather inconveniently located sink Why on earth did whoever designed this kitchen put the sink clear on the other side of the room away from the dishwasher? he wondered, and loaded the dishwasher to the best of his ability. He had just loaded the plates of waffles onto the tray with the appropriate silverware when it struck him that something was profoundly wrong. Hmm…waffles, check, syrup, check, forks and knives, check…what am I missing here? His eyes scanned the room, finally coming to rest on the coffeemaker sitting beside the sink, a can of Maxwell House beside it. Right, coffee! he realized.

As he waited for the coffee to brew, a sudden noise coming from the living room caused him to jump. " What the hell?" he muttered, poking his head through the doorway to the living room. One of the far computer screens had flashed to life and was clearly the source of the noise. " There's now way that can possibly be what it sounds like" he said disbelievingly, crossing the living room to investigate. Lowering himself into the chair of the computer station, Ron couldn't believe his eyes. There on the screen, ranting in impotent fury, and completely oblivious to his presence, was Dr. Drakken.

"Shego," the blue skinned super genius shouted again, looking quite comical wearing blue paisley pajamas with a vein on his forehead throbbing to beat the band. " Where the hell is she? I told her to just get a good, old-fashioned phone and answering machine. But does she listen? Noooooo! She just has to jump on every fad to come along…video conferencing…bah! What good is it if she's not there to conference with?" Winding down he finally seemed to notice someone sitting before the computer screen. " You're not Shego! Where is she? And why aren't you wearing a shirt? Shego!"

" Dude, shh," Ron whispered harshly, thankful for once that Drakken had such trouble recognizing him and remembering his name. " She's sleeping. Do you have any clue what time it is?"

Drakken seemed to consider the point for a moment, then disregarded it totally. " Evil never sleeps my shirtless friend! Now, go and get her…and a shirt while you're at it"

Ron sighed, trying again, " Listen. I'm sure you know what a ball of sunshine she can be when she's awake after having a full night's sleep. Are you telling me that I should go wake her up and tell her that some annoying blue guy with no fashion sense and a scar under his eye wants to talk to her?" He shrugged expressively; " If that's what you really want, then ok" He started to rise from the chair when a cry of frustration brought him back into the seat.

" Perhaps," Drakken said through clenched teeth, " We should just let her sleep for now. After all, she does need all the beauty rest she can get. Would you mind taking a message and giving it to her when she wakes up?"

Ron hid a smile, storing the beauty sleep comment for later. Never know when it might be useful to get her pissed off at Drakken. " Not at all," he said, " What's the message?"

Drakken grinned, " Wonderful. Would you let her know that Dr. Drakken called and that I'd like her to break in, I can trust you not to go to the authorities with this right?"

" Oh, of course you can Doc," Ron said, nodding reassuringly. " You want her to break in…where?"

" What?" Drakken sputtered, " Ah, yes, I'd like her to break in to HenchCo this evening and steal as many of their latest super conducting microchips as she can and bring them back to the lair. Did you get all of that or do you need me to repeat anything?"

" No, I've got it all Dr. Drakken" Ron smiled, " I'll be sure to give her the message."

" Good," Drakken laughed evilly, paused and squinted into the camera on his end, seeming to scrutinize Ron's image more closely " Have we met before? You seem very familiar somehow."

" Bye Doc," Ron replied, flipping off the computer and heading back to the kitchen to check on the coffee.

Pouring the now ready coffee into two mugs and setting them on the breakfast tray, Ron pondered this new turn of events. Ok, do I actually give her the message which would make me an accessory to the break in? Or do I ignore it, which could bring some unwanted attention to just who Shego had at her house taking messages for her, which I'm sure she wouldn't appreciate. Setting the tray down in front of the bedroom door and nudging it open gently he came to a conclusion. I'll tell her. After that, it's out of my hands He snuck quietly to the foot of the bed and smiled. Sheena had curled into a small ball, holding onto the pillow he'd used as if it were a stuffed animal. Wonder if there's a cuddlebuddy I could get her that she wouldn't immediately destroy…wait…I can't….I just can't think about her like we could have a viable relationship. Pasting a smile on his face, he pushed his disappointment at the thought that he couldn't even have a relationship with an evil woman aside and said, " Good morning Sheena" as cheerfully as he could. There was no response from the sleeping woman. " Ummm…shego?" he tried again. This time she simply flipped the other direction, clutching the pillow tighter in her arms. Here goes nothing he thought. Taking a deep breath he tried his most convincing Drakken impersonation. " Kim Possible! You think you're all that, but you're not!" It seemed to do the trick.

Sheena's eyes popped open and her hands ignited automatically, reducing the pillow in her arms to ash. " Damn it," she swore violently, " You're going to pay for that Princess," she said, her eyes scanning the room for her adversary, finally settling on a quite startled looking Ron. " You're still here," She said, sounding surprised and pleased at the same time before scowling, " And you thought it would be funny to wake me up like that, at…" She glowered at the alarm clock before turning her gaze back to him, " just after nine in the morning on a Saturday why?". She slowly advanced on the foot of the bed, hands still ablaze, and seemingly unconcerned that she was still naked from the previous evening's activities.

Ron gulped convulsively and took a step back, trying to ignore the blood streaming towards a certain part of his anatomy at the sight before him. One thing at a time Stoppable. First placate Sheena…then address your deeply disturbing masochistic side later. He held up his hands appeasingly, as if they had any chance of protecting him should she choose to attack. " Ok, I'll admit it was in bad taste. But I can make up for it…if you'll put off killing me for…oh, 2 more minutes"

Sheena raised an eyebrow skeptically, clearly not believing him " One-twenty," she said casually, " One-nineteen, one-eighteen…"

Ron hurriedly backpedaled a few paces, careful not to bump into the breakfast tray. Should have known she'd be a damn literalist he thought. Turning his back on her, though every fiber of his being screamed that wasn't a good idea, he bent down and cautiously lifted the tray to chest level before standing, knowing full well it'd be blocked from her view, and started walking backwards back into the bedroom.

Sheena frowned, trying to figure out just what the buffoon… Ron she corrected herself…thought it was he could do to keep her from kicking his ass. " Ninety-seconds," she sneered, " you might be able to make it if you stop trying to moonwalk back here and for once in your life act like a normal person". She watched as he slowly straightened to his full height and gracefully turned to face her, a shy smile on his face and the barest hint of a blush, and her breath caught in her throat. He didn't! She thought, stunned, her mind fighting to accept what she was seeing as real. In his hands was a breakfast tray, on which sat two plates of waffles, and two steamy cups of coffee. Without thinking, she extinguished her hands, just in time to catch herself against the footboard as she fell forward in shock. Something she didn't want to think about tugged painfully at her heart and she fought to keep her face neutral at least if she couldn't maintain hostile. Damn it Stoppable she thought Stop being such a nice guy before I do something stupid….like fall in love with you. Pushing herself off the footboard and sitting in the middle of the bed with as much dignity as she could muster she smirked, " Ok. Breakfast in bed. I guess I can kill you some other time…but you still owe me a new pillow."

Ron sighed with relief then smiled, extending the legs of the tray and setting it on the bed in front of her, " Looks like somebody got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning," he joked climbing onto the bed beside her.

" Ok, let's get a few things straight here Stoppable," Sheena glared, " First of all, I did not "get up" on the wrong side of the bed. Somebody decided it would be funny to wake me up at an ungodly hour with a horrible Drakken impersonation. Secondly it's my damn bed, I'll get up on whatever side of the bed I want," she picked up one of the mugs of coffee and took a cautious sip before turning her head away from him and muttering something under her breath.

" I'm sorry, I didn't catch that last part," Ron grinned, " You had something to add?"

Sheena scowled, then sighed, looking him in the eye Well, what do you know, he gets laid and the buffoon actually develops something resembling a backbone she thought sarcastically. " What I said was…" she took a deep breath and dropped her eyes, " Third…the left side of the bed…the side you took last night incidentally…is usually mine." She met his eyes defiantly. "Happy now?"

Ron at least had sense enough to look embarrassed, " Sorry. I didn't know". He suddenly wanted very much to be anywhere but where he was. Guess the whole being nice to me thing was a fluke he mused glumly. He picked up his the syrup and focused on pouring it over his waffles as if the fate of the world hung on his precision pouring.

Sheena sighed, running her hands through her long dark hair, a nervous habit she'd long thought eliminated, trying not to care that she'd hurt him, and angry that she did care. I so don't need this right now. Waiting for him to finish drowning his waffles in syrup, she sipped at her coffee again, wondering not for the first time if she'd gotten in over her head with her plan to destroy team Possible. Finally Ron set the syrup down on the tray again and she quickly covered his hand with hers. " It's ok. We were both kind of exhausted after…you know…" She blushed and moved her hand away, waiting for him to do the same before taking the syrup and coating her own waffles. Damn it Shego she seethed internally You do not blush or use euphemisms when discussing sex. You're not some air-headed teeny-bopper with a crush on some guy She set the syrup back down and gave him a sidelong glance. " Thanks, by the way" she said simply, cutting her waffles and taking a bite. They were surprisingly good.

" For?" Ron asked, genuinely puzzled as he took a sip of coffee. She even knows that word? And she's using it in regards to something I did. Oh, that's gotta hurt. Oddly enough, the thought of causing the woman sitting beside him pain didn't appeal to him the way it once did and he winced in sympathy, covering it by pretending to have burned his tongue on the hot liquid.

" This," she said simply, motioning at the tray " And…" She hesitated, " For comforting me last night, each and every time I woke up." Sheena ducked her head, not wanting to see how he took that.

" No big," Ron said awkwardly, blushing and looking away himself. Ok…I definitely fell into an alternate dimension or something recently. This is just too weird for even me. An uncomfortable silence fell over the room and the two focused on their meal, not wanting to know what the other was thinking or feeling until Ron couldn't take it any more. " Ummm…Sheena?" he asked.

" Yes," She responded warily, not looking at him.

" You sounded kind of surprised that I was still here when you woke up, why was that?" he questioned nervously.

Damn, he noticed She thought " Why wouldn't I be?" she asked as close to casually as she could, " Doesn't happen that often that a guy I bring home stays the whole night. Either I kick their sorry asses out after I get my needs met, or they slip out in the middle of the night." She looked everywhere but at him. Of course, he doesn't need to know that the ones who leave usually leave money on my nightstand like I'm some kind of exotic whore…or about the ones who flip out and leave rather than sleep with some green freak She thought bitterly, feeling the sting of tears welling in her eyes. I will not cry damn it

"Oh" Ron said simply, stealing a glance at her, wishing that he could just reach out and take her in his arms again now that they were awake Probably wise not to ask just how many men she's brought back here he thought. Though the thought did bring up another important issue. " Ahh…Sheena," he asked again, this time quietly moving towards the edge of the bed, " It just dawned on me that as incredible as last night was…we didn't use protection. Are you on the pill or anything?" He held his breath, waiting for her reaction, and hoping he wouldn't end up on the wrong end of a burst of plasma.

It wasn't a reaction he'd have expected, as she laughed bitterly, " Don't worry. The radiation from the meteorite that gave me my powers and this wonderful skin tone pretty much fried my reproductive system. Every gynecologist I've seen since it happened has said that I have less than half a percent of a chance of ever becoming pregnant…and the chances that I'd be able to bring a healthy baby to term are even smaller than that, so don't worry." She glanced at him sharply, " And if you're even remotely thinking about saying you're sorry. Save it. Ok? Who needs some mewling brat screwing up their lives? I mean, as it stands, I have total and complete freedom. I can go anywhere, do anything, or steal anything that I want, when I want. How could a "normal" life and a "family" possibly compare to that?" Unbeknownst to Sheena, the tears that had been welling in her eyes before had broken free during her rant and were streaming silently down her pale green cheeks.

Ron's heart went out to Sheena and impulsively he pulled her into a hug. Oh, the hell with it. If she kills me for this, then she kills me, but right now she's hurting and I'm not just going to sit here and do nothing. he thought, holding her as closely and waiting for the tell-tale sound of her hands igniting to confirm his fate. Much to his surprise, it never came. Instead she melted back into his arms, almost sliding completely onto his lap, and softly ran her hands along his arms. Ron had to admit that the sensation of holding her like this wasn't at all unpleasant, though occasionally the sweep of her fingers would give him goosebumps up and down both arms. If only… he began, then closed the thought down quickly. You can't force her to change Ron. And you know even if you could, you wouldn't want to…besides you remember what she did to Drakken after the business with the mind control chip and the moodulator. . Drakken…right. He smiled, wondering how she'd take the news of his conversation with her "boss". When Sheena slid off of his lap and focused on what was left of her breakfast, studiously ignoring his presence yet again, he figured it was as good a time as any to broach the subject. " Oh, while you were sleeping, Dr. Drakken called. Asked me if I'd mind giving you a message" he offered as if he were discussing the weather, and glancing at her casually.

" Oh, what did he want?" She asked before taking her last bit of waffle from her plate. A moment later the words registered in her mind with their full weight and she almost choked, her eyes widening in shock and her throat working convulsively to get the waffle down as she turned to face him fully. " What! Drakken called and you actually let him see you? Do you have some secret deep desire for me to kick your ass?"

Ron quickly decided that while comical, laughing at her reaction would be hazardous to his health and so satisfied himself with only a grin, " Relax. It's all good. He didn't recognize me at all…you know how he is. So our secret is safe for now. As to what he wanted…" He hesitated No turning back Ron, you have to let her make her own choices about what to do with the information. " He wanted me to tell you that your job this evening is to break into HenchCo and steal as many of their latest batch of super conducting microchips as you can."

Sheena felt her jaw drop slightly Drakken just casually tells someone part of a scheme as a message to me without knowing just who he was talking to first? Oooh…we are so going to have to have a chat about security measures. she thought, utterly amazed that any of his schemes ever got as far as they did. " I see," She arched an eyebrow, watching him closely, " And what are you going to do with this information?"

Still grinning, Ron moved the breakfast tray carefully from the bed and set it on the floor before laying back, his arms behind his head. " Absolutely nothing." He replied.

Sheena was floored. " You're not going to go running off to Kimmie and let her know?" She asked incredulously, straddling his chest and staring down into his face.

Memories of the previous night flashed through Ron's mind as he stared up at the naked woman straddling him and he forced them aside, though not without difficulty Focus, Ron, focus…not there…on her face, look at her face he commanded himself. " Why would I?" he asked innocently, trying to hide his amusement at her disbelief.

He's lost his mind Sheena thought. " Why would you!" She repeated, "You're a hero" She accented each word by poking his chest with a slender finger, " Or at least the side kick to one…foiling crimes is what you do" She continued jabbing at his chest with her finger, literally trying to drive her point home.

With a quick movement, Ron snagged her finger on its way back to his chest and held it gently, smiling up at her. " You're right," he admitted, " However, we only do that when we're asked to help. And unless anyone at HenchCo actually wants Kim Possible to know what they're up to these days, they're not going to ask us again. They are evil too after all, and I think we kind of made an impression the first time."

" So, as long as the people Drakken has me steal from aren't the types to call you and the cheerleader for help, you're ok with it?" She offered cautiously. He nodded, " Even when we both know that whatever it is that these microchips do, Drakken is going to use them against you and Kim at some point?"

" We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," he offered evenly.

Utterly baffled, she climbed off his chest and laid beside him, propping herself up on one arm so she could continue to look at him, and draping a leg casually across his. " Ok, I give up. Why?"

Ron smiled up at her, secretly thrilled by the casual affection in the way she put her leg over his. " Two reasons," he replied, " One…no matter how wonderful they may seem on the drawing board, Dr. Drakken's plans are usually so grandiose that they're bound to fail on their own even without Kim and me interfering. I mean come on, the man keeps building lairs with easily accessible self-destruct buttons. Kim and I hardly break a sweat anymore foiling his plans. Now, if the microchips were to remain with HenchCo, they might be sold off to someone who's not as ambitious or a lot more practical, and they might actually win."

Sheena nodded slowly, realizing that he'd made a very astute observation He's not as much a buffoon as people think. I've definitely underestimated him. " Ok, genius," she smirked, though it was more teasing than sarcasm, " First of all, grandiose? Since when have you used words like that, and you said there were two reasons for not running to tell Kimmie that Drakken's got something nasty brewing. What's the second?"

Ron actually blushed, " Ahh…yea…about grandiose…would you believe that I actually did very well on the verbal portion of the SAT? Math totally screwed me, but yea, I know words like that, just don't use them too much. Don't want to ruin my image…but the second reason…I don't just want to have been a one night stand. It'll be tricky…but I'd like to try having a relationship…with you" He took a deep breath and steeled himself for the inevitable rejection.

Sheena's heart pounded in her chest, it was the last thing she'd expected him to say, and yet some small part of her had hoped that he would. It'd never work she rationalized One, maybe both of us, would end up getting hurt because of it. And yet, wasn't that the plan? Use him to destroy team Possible, paving the road for easy world conquest? Better just let him down gently She thought. What came out of her mouth however was a cautious, " It'd be dangerous, maybe too dangerous Ron"

" Come on, we, ok so mainly you, do much more dangerous things on a regular basis" he countered, surprising her by not just letting go easily.

" I'm evil," she stated simply with a meaningful look.

" Good and evil are largely based on our points of view," he replied

" I'm too much older than you, you're what, 17? It's illegal." She tried again desperately

Ron laughed, " Now you're just grasping at straws. You're what, 23?" She nodded silently. " Big deal, I'm 18, you're only five years older than I am and I'm an adult, so it's not illegal. Not that legality has ever really mattered where you're concerned anyway. So what's the real reason?" he challenged.

Sheena's eyes widened as she frantically tried to think of an excuse to push him away that he might actually accept. She never meant for the truth to come out, but it did. " I'm scared…I don't want to hurt you and I'm scared that if we tried to make it work that I'd end up hurting you, ok?" She dipped her head, letting her raven locks hide her face.

Ron was stunned by the strength of the emotion in her voice and he reached up to gently caress her cheek, waiting until she looked at him again before speaking, " It's ok to be afraid, but you can't let your fear make your decisions. Could you hurt me in a relationship? Yes. Could I hurt you the same way? Again yes. It's one of the risks of a relationship, but I think we could have something that's worth those risks. But only if you agree that it's worth trying. I won't try to force you into something you genuinely don't want."

He's giving me an out she thought, trying to ignore the pleasurable sensation of having his hand on her cheek, I can tell him that I'm not ready for a relationship. That's bound to be something he's heard before, probably used to it. Sheena closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of Ron's hand for as long as she could. " Does this offer include breakfast in bed on a regular basis" she heard herself saying, a radiant smile splitting her features as she opened her eyes again. Damn emotions, always complicating things.

Ron smiled, feeling his heartbeat speed up as he realized what she was saying, " We'll see" he replied, leaning up and capturing her lips with his softly.

Sheena pulled back from the kiss reluctantly with an oddly shy smile and climbed off the bed. Walking around the bed to stand beside the nightstand, she touched a panel on the wall and a section slid back to reveal a closet. " Well," she said winking at Ron, " I guess if we're going to give this relationship thing a shot, I should at least pretend to have some sense of modesty." She removed a beautiful, green silk robe from the closet and put it on, cinching it closed tightly.

" Damn," Ron grinned, " Why oh, why did I say relationship and not just friends with benefits?" He climbed off the bed himself and examined what was left of his clothes from the night before. The shirt was completely useless as far as clothing went, as were the pants. "Note to self, find Sheena resistant clothing, or clothes that tear off easily" He muttered.

" I vote for the latter," She said flopping back down on the bed and striking a very sensual pose, smiling at her new boyfriend I have a boyfriend She wondered I guess there really is a first time for everything. A sudden thought occurred to her and she shuddered " Just nothing with Velcro…that is such a mood killer"

" I don't want to know how you know that," he said, trying not to laugh. It was funny, in less than twenty four hours he'd gone from heart broken to cloud nine. Maybe his feelings for Kim hadn't run as deeply as he'd thought. As if on cue, his Kimmunicator fell out of the back pocket of the ruined pants.

" You should probably call nerdlinger before Kimmie decides she wants to find you," Sheena offered casually, clearly not happy with the idea.

" Yea," Ron agreed, bending over and picking up the device. " Is it wrong that I'd really rather just stay here and cuddle with you all day?"

Sheena smiled, " No…but you know I'd be really pissed if I had to find a new house cause the Princess tracked you here. Why do you think I don't keep rooms in Drakken's lairs anymore? I got sick of losing everything every time you two paid a little visit. Now call…I'll give you some privacy, I need to use the bathroom anyway." She considered adding that she'd be able to hear any betrayal, but knew he wasn't the type that would do that kind of thing to someone he cared about. She carefully hid a frown as she walked into the bathroom and closed the door, wondering what kind of person she'd find herself to be when the moment came to make that decision.

Ron sighed, calling Wade was not going to be fun, but he knew Sheena was right, there was a good chance KP would try to track him down if she thought there was a good enough reason. And considering why he'd run off in the first place, he was sure she'd think she had a reason. Once again, he pried the back open, and reconnected the power supply. Turning it on, he was greeted by a very drawn and tired looking Wade.

" Ron!" The younger man exclaimed with apparently equal amounts of relief and frustration, " Where have you been? Kim totally flipped when I told her that your Kimmunicator had been deactivated"

" I've been, somewhere safe." He said carefully, " When did you talk to Kim anyway? I didn't miss out on a mission or something did I?"

" No, no hits on the site lately; she called me last night, right before I was going to call the police to send you some back up," Wade fixed him with a meaningful stare, causing Ron to squirm uncomfortably, " She'd heard someone in her house and I explained that you had just gone in there. She seemed really uncomfortable when she put one and one together, and wouldn't tell me what could have caused you to run out. But, she seemed almost guilty, and wanted me to track you down last night so she could talk to you. I convinced her though, that she should maybe give you some time to yourself…which held until about two hours ago."

I've got a very bad feeling about this Ron thought " What happened two hours ago," he asked, checking the clock, it was just after ten now so two hours ago would have been about eight. Oh, I know I don't want to know the answer to that question

" She called again," Wade said simply, " Apparently she tried calling your house a few times and got no response. So, she went over, saw that your scooter was missing as was your parent's car, and panicked and asked me to track you down….I'm sorry man, she gave me the puppy dog pout…I caved."

Ron sighed. Damn that puppy dog pout he thought. The sound of the bathroom door drew his attention, and he smiled at Sheena framed in the doorway, motioning for her to come back to the bed but quietly. " It's ok Wade. I've yet to meet anyone who can resist Kim's puppy dog pout. How's she traveling, ground or air? And what's her ETA?"

" Her mom actually loaned her the station wagon since this weather pretty much makes a skydiving entrance out of the question" As if to underscore the point, the windows of the house were rattled by a close roll of thunder. " It's probably slowed her down some too. If she's going the speed limit, which is doubtful if she thinks you're in danger, I'd say you could expect to see her in about forty-five minutes. Since she's freaked, I'd say, probably twenty minutes."

" Thanks Wade" Ron said, turning off the Kimmunicator and glancing forlornly at Sheena who didn't look any happier about the all too short time they had left together than he did.

" We both knew it wouldn't be easy," she said softly, sitting on the bed and taking his hand in hers, intertwining their fingers. " It'd almost be worth her catching us together, you know, just to see her face."

Ron smiled weakly, giving her hand a squeeze, " Yea, because once she got over the shock, she'd take it oh so well. I'm not sure whose ass would end up more kicked, yours or mine."

" Yours, I can actually hold my own in a fight with Kimmie," She replied with a sweet smile. " You should get going though…that is if you want to put enough distance between yourself and this place that she doesn't get nosy. I'd offer you an umbrella but again, that'd just mean unanswerable questions."

" You're enjoying the thought of me soaking wet and miserable being picked up by Kim in just my boxers far too much" Ron said, standing and pulling her up with him.

Sheena led him out of the room and down the hall to the front door. The thought of little miss perfect, who had hurt her Ron deeply with her carelessness, getting to see him soaking wet, and no doubt comfort him, maybe even help him dry off, bothered her more than she cared to admit. " Well, here we are," she said with forced cheerfulness, pulling the door open with almost enough force to remove it from its hinges. You know, the storm really, really fits my mood she thought as a sudden breeze swept through the open door, whipping her long hair around violently.

" Hey," Ron said softly, squeezing her hand, " It'll be ok. And it's not like we won't see each other again. I have no doubt in my mind that you know full well where I live, as well as when my parents are and are not home. You're more than welcome to visit" he waggled his eyebrows suggestively, trying to lighten the mood. " You know, if there was any other way, I'd stay here with you." Pulling her close, he grazed her lips with his. When he pulled away there were tears shining in both of their eyes. " You be safe on the job tonight Sheena." He whispered softly, " No unnecessary risks, ok?"

She forced a smile into place, fighting the urge to tell him to stay and damn the consequences. You know what would happen if she caught the two of you together, especially with so little clothing. It'd split that team up sooner than you'd like, and he'd never want to see you again. Are you really ready for that? she asked herself. " Go on," she said, nudging him half heartedly towards the storm, " The longer we stand here the closer Kimmie gets." Ron nodded and began to trudge out into the rain. " Wait!" She called, running after him and catching him on the edge of her porch. Grabbing his head between her hands, she pulled him close for one last passionate kiss. Just as suddenly she released him and stifled a laugh at his dazed appearance. " Didn't want you forgetting me," she half-joked.

He smiled, " Never gonna happen." Turning away slowly, he headed out into the rain, glancing over his shoulder every few feet. When he could no longer make out her form standing on the porch, or the house at all, he broke into a run, trying to figure out just what he would tell Kim about his past twelve or so hours that could possibly explain his current state.


	4. Confrontations with Kim

Bad as she wants me to be

Chapter 4: Confrontations with Kim

Author: RoguesKnight

Disclaimer: Shego, Ron, Kim, et al. Still not mine. However, if any of Disney's lawyers are interested, I'm willing to part with an only slightly used soul…lacks a moral compass however. If interested, you know how to reach me.

Author's note: To my wonderful reviewers, a very heartfelt BOO-YAH! You guys totally rock, it's great to come home from work (of course I'd get a job right after starting a story, but don't worry, I'll try to update as often as possible) to see I have messages from you folks. So in…completely non-random order thank you to: Sand Lord, eckles,BrianDarksoul, Scotty Boi, Sheryl Nantus,labll52, chris-warren876, rabidsquirrel, harrypl, Bucky-O-Hair,dbfox007,vega,SkyMaiden, and exeditor. As always, dedicated to the woman I love with all my heart, my beautiful fiancée.

Ron had been going a good fifteen minutes, and had covered at least a quarter mile of heavily wooded road, when he first made out dim headlights cutting through the rain ahead of him and gaining quickly. Note to self he thought, coming to a stop a good distance away from the road Convince Wade to de-activate microchip so she can't find me so easily Granted, being 'chipped had proven to be useful in the past. However, he was hardly the gangly, bumbling youth, easily captured or kidnapped that he'd been when team Possible had first gotten started. Nine times out of ten it seemed lately, he'd been able to hold his own in fights with run of the mill henchmen, and had on occasion actually been the one to do the rescuing. Even Shego's not as far out of my league as she used to be His face lit up at the thought of his new girlfriend, and he had to force himself to look as miserable as he could, lest Kim think something was up. " Of course, me standing here in just my boxers will probably give her the impression that something's up." He muttered. The familiar red station wagon was close enough that he could make out Kim's blurred image though the windshield. He waved casually, as if standing in the rain in his boxers was an everyday occurrence, and wished he'd come up with a decent excuse for his current state. Guess I'm just going to have to play it by ear he thought with a groan, history had shown time and again that his excused made up on the fly lacked a certain believability.

The station wagon skid to a stop a few feet from Ron, sending a small wave of mud and water over his already drenched body. Seconds after the vehicle came to a stop, a red headed blur sprang from the driver's seat and raced to the rain soaked young man, enveloping him in a tight hug. " Thank god you're alright," Kim whispered against Ron's ear. She loosened her grip on her old friend and took a step back, pausing only momentarily to take in his unusual appearance, before slamming a delicate fist into his shoulder with enough force behind it to rock him backwards. Unfortunately for Ron, he lacked the traction on the slippery ground that Kim had with her boots, and his attempt at recovery from the blow simply caused him to slip and fall into her mud at her feet. " Don't you ever, ever pull a stunt like this again Ronald Stoppable," Kim said, ignoring her friends pitiable state as she glared down at him, her emerald eyes flashing violently, " Do you have any idea how worried I've been?"

Who cares? Was the first response to pop into Ron's mind Probably just gave you a reason to cling to Monkey Sizing her up, he noted that she was in her usual mission clothes, black crop top and olive green cargo pants. Hmmm…coming out to get me actually counts as a mission? Is the state of the world so sad? It was the expression on her face though, that startled him the most. It was as if her anger at his disappearance was at war with concern for his well being, an expression that he'd seen on his mother's face whenever he'd seriously screwed up as a kid. Well…if Sheena hadn't managed to get all sexual desire for Kim out of my system, that image would have done the trick He shuddered. " Like you really care," he said bitterly without thinking as he pushed himself up out of the mud.

The words slammed into Kim as powerfully as any punch she'd ever taken, stealing her breath in a way no physical blow could have. " Of course I care," She managed to whisper, stunned that he could ever doubt her feelings for him and what they had. " We've known each other since Pre-K, you're more than just my best friend. I love you" She noticed some of the hardness melt from his features at the words spilling unbidden from her lips. " You're like a brother to me, only much less annoying than the tweebs….most of the time. I don't know what I'd do without you. I need you with me Ron."

Ron sighed, running a muddy hand through his rain soaked hair. "Whatever you say Kim," he said softly, " Whatever you say." Once that kind of admission would have thrilled him beyond words, aside from the comment about her seeing him as a brother, he'd had dreams where she'd said those words. Of course, she'd been the one soaking wet and wearing next to nothing, but those days were gone. She'd broken his heart too many times with her blindness to his feelings to have the right to put it back together again this time. " Look," he sighed, motioning to the car, " You came out all this way to get me, do you mind if we actually get into the car?"

Kim blushed, " Right, coming to the rescue. I should actually do that final rescuing part." She looked him over, noticing the strange series of scratches on Ron's chest and his general lack of clothes, and forced herself to wait on the questions building in her mind. " I think there are some towels in the back of the car. I don't have any extra clothes though" She left the question of just what had happened to his clothes clearly in the open.

Ron simply nodded in acknowledgement and walked around to the rear hatch of the car, opening it and tossing a towel from the back onto the passenger's seat and closing the door again. No sense in ruining Dr. Mrs. P's upholstery because I'm mad at her daughter . Without a word, he climbed into the passenger's seat and slammed the door, leaving Kim out in the rain.

Kim slicked her rain soaked hair back from her face with a sigh, knowing that she and Ron had a serious talk coming and not having a clue how to broach it with him without making matters worse. " Yea, I can do anything," she muttered, heading for driver's side, " Except have a civilized conversation with my best friend it seems." She climbed into the car and started the engine, before turning it around and heading back towards Middleton. It's going to be a hell of a long two hours she thought, stealing a glance at Ron, who was determinedly staring out the passenger's side window at the passing scenery. " Ron…" she started hesitantly, unsure of what to say.

" Yes Kim?" He asked, his voice devoid of any sign of emotion, not bothering to even look at her.

Kim? She thought, Why not KP? Oh, why does he have to make this so much harder than it has to be?. She cheeks burned as she recalled the previous evening, Wade had filled her in on the identity of the "intruder" that had interrupted her and Josh's love making, and it hadn't taken a super genius to figure out that Ron had seen and probably heard, something and decided to bolt. How much, he'd seen or heard wasn't really something she wanted to know but some part of her knew they'd have to discuss it, even if just to clear the air. " Nothing" She said sheepishly. Coward. Desperate for anything to fill the awkward silence, she flipped on the radio, and scanned through the stations until she heard something recognized, Christy Carlson Romano's latest single, " Could It Be", and began to sing along.

Ron's eyes narrowed in barely contained anger listening to his life long friend and partner sing along to a song about realizing a more than platonic love for a best friend Ooh…the universe has a sick sense of humor he thought darkly. " I hate that song," he stated simply, continuing to stare out the window. Truth be told, it wasn't that long ago that he'd enjoyed the song, had even imagined winning Kim's heart by serenading her with it. Now it was just painful. He was pulled from his musings by the feeling of Kim's soft hand covering his own and was surprised that his first reaction was joy at the simple contact. Though he was deliriously happy that he'd found a woman who had accepted him as he was in Sheena, he knew some small sliver of his heart would always belong to his best friend. The joy he felt was quickly replaced by guilt, and he pulled his hand away sharply. Damn traitorous heart he groused.

Kim felt tears welling in her eyes at the sudden rejection, and she guided the station wagon to the side of the road and killed the engine. Probably not safe to drive if I start crying she reasoned road's hard enough to see as it is, and it would suck if after all we've been through together, we were killed in a car accident that could have been avoided. The fact that she couldn't stand the silence that had filled the space between them, a space that seemed to be rapidly growing, didn't have anything to do with her decision to stop the car, nope, not at all. " Ron," she started, turning in her seat to face him, " We need to talk."

Here it comes he thought bitterly here's where she tells me that she's replaced me with Mankey, not only as a friend but as a partner. Finally turning to look at her he could see that she was near tears, and his face softened. Even more powerful than the famed puppy dog pout, was the sight of a crying Kim. The times that he'd seen her moved to tears were few and far between, and never for manipulative reasons. He hated to see her so upset, and would do anything in his power to make things right again for her. Anything? a quiet part of his mind asked And if she wanted you to stop seeing her arch-nemesis? He quickly shoved the thought aside. After all, Kim was never going to find out about his relationship with Shego. " Just do it quickly Kim," he said, trying not to think about the choices he'd have to make if she ever did find out about his new relationship " Like pulling off a band-aid. Break up with me, and tell me how you want Monkey to do the missions with you from now on, and I'll get out of your life"

Kim gaped, feeling the tears start down her cheeks. He thinks I want to replace him with Josh? She'd thought his pulling away from her was the worst pain she could take, but it paled in comparison to the thought that her best friend was under the impression he was in any way replaceable. She didn't even bother to correct his deliberate jab at Josh. Without thinking about it, she released her seatbelt and threw herself across the space between the seats and onto Ron, hugging him as hard as she could and pressing her face into his neck. " I could never replace you Ron," she said quietly, knowing full well that he could hear her, " We swore to be best friends for forever, nothing will ever change that."

Wish that was true KP he thought. He was surprised to find his arms going around his long time friend's back and rubbing it comfortingly.

Kim smiled against his neck and nuzzled against it briefly as she calmed down. Why did I never realize how great it feels to be held like this by Ron? she wondered. A moment later she remembered his current state of undress and pulled away, scurrying back into her seat and blushing furiously. Calm down girl she reprimanded herself You love Josh. You're just still worked up from last night, and Ron's here…available. You're just transferring what you feel for Josh to Ron because you're worked up She only wished she felt as sure about that as she thought.. " What makes you possibly think that I'd ever replace you with anyone Ron?" she asked, trying to hide the hurt from her voice.

"Last night," he said coldly, his brown eyes meeting her green ones. " We had a dat…we were going to hang out and celebrate our anniversary," he said quickly, hoping that she didn't notice his slip, " and what do I find when I come to pick you up? I find my best friend and partner, fucking some other guy that she'd told me that she was over"

Kim blinked, taken aback by the venom in Ron's voice. He almost said date she thought, turning the words over in her mind and he accused me of being intimate… her mind refused to accept that he would ever use the word "fucking" with another guy. I always knew that Ron would get jealous when I dated guys…could it be that he… She blushed again. It was obvious in retrospect, a thousand little things over the course of their friendship, each one his way of showing her how he really felt about her and each one she'd willfully ignored. Oh Ron she thought. " You know," she said defensively, " You could have rung the doorbell instead of just walking in."

Ron was stunned. She had the nerve to blame him? " The door was open, as in not closed all the way Kim. Given how easy it would be for any of our enemies to find us, I thought that you might be in trouble. I thought that you might need help… I thought…never mind"

Kim at least had the grace to look embarrassed, " I'm sorry." She whispered.

The simple words effectively killed the righteous anger that Ron had been enjoying, " For?" he probed.

Of course he can't let it go Kim mused Damn stubborn man. " Everything," she replied, " I didn't mean for last night to happen like it did Ron. I was getting ready to go out with you, looking forward to it really, and not just because you suggested something other than Bueno Nacho for the first time in five years," Heartened by the small smile tugging at her friend's lips, she continued, " Then Josh came over…in tears…he told me the only reason he'd cheated on me was that he'd been scared. That he'd never felt as strongly for anyone as he did for me, and it scared him so when Bonnie made a pass at him, he jumped on it to keep from feeling afraid. I know it's lame, but I believed him, and when he kissed me, it felt like old times…and one thing led to another…I never meant for you to see that. If I could go back in time and change last night I would. But I can't, I can only ask you to forgive me for hurting you." She bit her lower lip and looked at her old friend shyly, hoping he wouldn't throw a lifetime of friendship away over one stupid indiscretion.

Ron carefully considered what she'd said, all of what she'd said and not just the part about how she'd been looking forward to their evening together. He sighed, " Do you love him?" he asked softly.

Kim looked away, staring through the driver's side window, " I don't know," she replied uncertainly, " I used to. And I won't lie, there's part of me that wants to believe him because on some level, I'll always love him. He was my first serious boyfriend, my first serious love….and my _first_…not that last night was the first time for us." She blushed That's probably the only thing that could have made what he'd seen or heard worse she considered if he thought that that had been the first time Josh and I made love

Ron closed his eyes and slowly ran a hand over his face. Don't ask how long she's been sexually active, cause you're not going to like the answer no matter what he told himself. So, Kim had been having sex with Monkey, possibly for a good portion of their relationship, without ever even mentioning it to him in passing. Whatever happened to us being able to tell each other everything? he wondered. Of course, he didn't feel as bad about keeping his new relationship with Sheena a secret now. Moreover, he found that it wasn't the fact that she'd been having sex that hurt so much as the fact that she felt the need to hide it from him. Opening his eyes again, he glanced over at his red headed best friend, and though she wasn't looking at him anymore, he could see the pain and insecurity in her face reflected in the window. "Kim," he said reaching out and placing a hand on her arm, " Of course I forgive you. You're my best friend. It just really hurts to know that you couldn't trust me enough to tell me when things got that serious with Mon…Mankey. I might not have approved, but I'd have been there for you KP. I miss the closeness we used to have, and I'd like to try and get it back. So I forgive you. It's just not going to be easy for me to forget what I saw…so, if I seem distant sometimes, try not to freak too much…I'm just trying to deal, ok?"

Kim looked at the hand on her arm and smiled hesitantly, it was the first time since she'd picked him up that he'd initiated contact, " I'd like that." She said softly, glancing up into his eyes. " And I understand if it takes a while for you to get the image of me…you know…out of your head." She blushed and quickly turned her head away Get a grip Kim, you do not like the idea of Ron having a picture of you naked in his mind. Pushing the thoughts aside, though not entirely successfully, she started the car again. " What do you say I finish rescuing you?" she smiled.

Ron found himself returning the smile, " I'd say thank you, cause when you turned the car off, it killed the heat, and if you haven't noticed, it's kind of cold in here." He said, shivering and pointing to his nipples which were standing out on his pale chest.

Carefully easing the car back onto the road, Kim hid a smile behind her hand and stole a sidelong look at her friend, happy that the awkwardness between them seemed to be diminishing. Wonder just how cold it is she thought as her eyes slid down his body to his polka dotted boxers. She quickly looked back at the road, I'm just horny she thought That's got to be it. Being with Josh again last night's re-ignited my sex drive and it's in overdrive right now. Yep. I'm not at all sexually attracted to Ron Still, she had to admit that the years of fighting evil had been kind to him. " So," she said conversationally as they passed into the city limits of Lowerton " I'm going to have to ask before my brain explodes. Just why the hell are you wearing only your boxers, way the hell out in the middle of nowhere in the rain?"

Ron groaned. Of course she just had to ask. And granted, we're giving the whole be more honest with your best friend thing a shot, but I'm not sure she could handle this little bit of truth.. " In my defense," he shot back, " It was not raining when I was first in my boxers in the middle of nowhere. And since we had to destroy my mega-weather generator a few months back, I can't really be held responsible for the weather, can I?"

Kim suppressed a laugh. " No stalling Ron."

Here goes nothing he thought. " Ok, KP, you want the absolute truth, you've got it." He said seriously. " Last night, after…you know…went to a bar in Lowerton, got picked up by Shego of all people…she took me back to her place where she burned my shirt and pants beyond repair and we made love." He winced, waiting for the slamming of the breaks and his forced exit from the car that he was sure was coming. At least I hope she stops the car first he thought.

Kim did laugh this time, taking a hand from the wheel and smacking his shoulder lightly. " I thought we were going to be honest with each other from now on. I'm serious, what's with the lack of clothes?"

Ron considered trying to convince her that he was indeed being honest, but knowing Kim, she wouldn't believe him short of actually catching him together with Sheena, and even then she might have trouble believing it. He smiled So much for the truth . " Ok KP," he said doing his best to sound embarrassed, " the truth is that after I saw you and Josh…I did take my scooter for a ride, trying to clear my head…which is why I disconnected my Kimmunicator's power. I…I just wasn't ready to talk to you. I knew if you knew what I'd seen you'd have wanted to talk it over…and I didn't want to say something that I'd regret later just because I was hurt" He paused and looked out his window, partially for dramatic effect, partially to hide the fact that it still hurt to think about.

Kim found she had to blink away tears as he recounted the events of the previous evening, grateful for the adverse weather conditions forcing her to keep her eyes on the road; she had the distinct feeling that had she been looking at him as he spoke there would be little to keep her from breaking down crying and throwing herself into his arms. Even when he was hurting, he put me first she realized He didn't want to hurt my feelings even though it sounds like he was crushed. She idly wondered if Josh would have done the same, and swiftly stomped it down. Of course he would She thought firmly, though she felt less than one hundred percent certain of that fact.

" Anyway," Ron continued, finally looking back in Kim's direction, " I did end up in Lowerton. I even considered trying to go to one of the seedier bars…but unfortunately…I kinda got scooter-jacked. I tried to follow the guys who took it…and did pretty well for a while, because lets face it, that thing was a piece of junk. But once they got out of the Lowerton city limits, I lost them."

" Ok," Kim said, surprised that anyone other than Ron would have valued that scooter, " Still doesn't explain why you only have your boxers on, or why you didn't call for help since you had your Kimmunicator. I mean, it wouldn't have even had to be me. Wade could have hooked you up with a ride home."

Ron smiled sheepishly, " Ahhh…yea. About that, you see I was kind of pissed off and not thinking straight at that point. So I was just walking down the road, kicking rocks, and I slipped on one I was trying to kick, and ended up falling down a hill into the woods. Did you know that vines with those nice sharp prickers on them hurt like hell when you're rolling down over them?"

Kim fought to keep a smile off her face Only my Ron she thought affectionately Could do that much damage to himself unintentionally At least it explained the scratches on his chest. " Go on," she encouraged.

" When I finally came to a stop, thanks in large part to a wonderfully placed tree," he grimaced, " I saw that my shirt, and pants were seriously ripped beyond being worth saving, and my dress shoes had actually split, with the tops separating from the soles. Miraculously, the Kimmunicator wasn't broken. But I didn't want anyone to see me like that…so I walked back up the hill but I must have gotten disoriented in the tumble because I ended up walking further away from Lowerton. Eventually I found a run down abandoned house with a busted lock. That's where I spent the night. When I woke up this morning, I called Wade and was going to ask for a ride but he told me that you were already on your way, so I decided to try and meet you out on the road."

Kim smiled and stole a glance at him, obviously satisfied with the explanation. " There," she said, " Was that really so hard?"

Ron returned the smile Well for coming up with an excuse you'd believe on the fly, yes What came out of his mouth was, " Maybe a little. I mean, getting rescued by you from villains is one thing. I can deal with that, because even after all these years I'm still not the fighter that you are. But needing to be rescued from my own clumsiness? Yea, that's more than a little embarrassing."

Kim reached out and took his hand in hers, giving it a gentle squeeze. " Ron, you shouldn't be so down on yourself, especially in regards to your fighting skills. You're a master of monkey kung fu, that's something. If you'd break out the mystical monkey power every now and then instead of…." She hesitated, trying to think of a nice way to describe his usual odd fighting style " holding back all the time."

"Hey," Ron said, mock offended, " Who is the one who always wants me to be a distraction? Hard to distract people if they think you might actually be a threat. You know in our line of work people pay more attention to you than they do to me, because you're the one they see as a threat. I mean, other than Monkeyfist, which of our foes even really notices me?"

" Ok, ok, I see your point," Kim reluctantly agreed. " How about the next time we have to go up against….oh…lets say Drakken and Shego, that I get to be the distraction and you can fight Shego?" She grinned evilly. " And after she kicks your ass, whether we win or lose, I'll give you some pointers as to what helps swelling go down and bruising disappear the quickest.. Whether you like it or not, she'll definitely nail you a time or two, and they won't be pretty oh monkey master."

Ron fought to keep his face at least neutral. " You know KP, despite the whole evil thing, she's pretty hot. I wouldn't mind if she nailed me a time or two…or three…" he unable to maintain neutrality anymore, his face broke out in an almost devilish grin as she shuddered in response to that comment.

" Ewww…_so_ not the image I need in my brain ever" she said, shuddering again. " If you're that hard up that you think Shego's hot, I'll put in a good word…or however many words it takes, with the cheerleaders…one of them would probably give you a chance…I know Tara used to have a thing for you. Heck, if you ask me, she still does deep down." Glancing out the window, Kim saw that they had finally passed back into the Middleton city limits. Quickest and easiest mission ever she thought happily.

Ron chuckled If only you knew Kim, if only you knew . " That's ok KP, I appreciate the offer, but I don't need you to vouch for my date worthiness. You know Bonnie would just use something like that to bring up the idea that we had a relationship again."

Kim nodded, seeing his point but not really liking it. She wanted her best friend to be happy, and to find someone who would appreciate how great he really was. Someone like me… she thought, turning onto the street that held Ron's house I mean, if I hadn't gotten back together with Josh maybe we could have given it a shot. We're hardly as immature as we once were, and if it didn't work, our friendship might actually survive these days It would definitely be something to keep in mind. She smiled as she turned into Ron's driveway. " Here we are," she stated.

Oh, KP's mastery of the obvious is unparalleled He thought, then paused Yikes. One night with Sheena and I'm starting to sound like Shego He shuddered, then smiled, wondering if any of his little eccentricities had rubbed of on her. Drakken would love that I'm sure. " Thanks for the lift Kim," he said, opening his door and taking a quick peek to make sure none of his neighbors would see his mad dash into the house. At least the rain's stopped he thought brightly.

" No big," she replied with a grin, " Anyone could have picked up their nearly naked and soaking wet best friend in the middle of nowhere."

He hesitated, " Hey Kim?" She looked at him. " I know we missed our "anniversary" but how about grabbing some Bueno Nacho later?"

She smiled sadly and shook her head " Sorry Ron, no can do." She took a deep breath Ok, we're trying for honesty again, so here goes. " Josh is up for promotion to assistant manager at the supermarket today, I told him that I'd take him out to dinner regardless of the outcome of his performance review." Seeing his crestfallen face at the news her heart went out to him.

"I understand KP," he replied. " Coast is clear, I'd better scramble." He was out of the car and lifting up the welcome mat to retrieve the spare key when he heard Kim calling to him. Against his better judgment, he turned back and looked.

" How's tomorrow sound for Bueno Nacho instead?" She asked, leaning her head out of the driver's side window, " Just you and me like old times. My treat"

Ron grinned, unlocking the door, " You have no idea how much trouble you just got yourself into Kim," he called back as she began to pull back from the driveway. He could see he laughing and waving through the windshield and he waved back until she was out of sight. Maybe we can revive our friendship he considered walking into his home, grateful that his parents had chosen that week to take a cruise for their second honeymoon and he wouldn't have to answer any awkward questions about why Kim was dropping him off in just his boxers. Shutting the door behind him, Ron turned to go upstairs to his room only to be confronted by a very confused looking naked mole rat. " Rufus buddy, you will not believe the night I had," he said with a smile. Bending down, he held out a hand and Rufus scurried into his palm. " Let's get some lunch and I'll tell you all about it"

As Ron carried him towards the kitchen, Rufus took in his friend's appearance and his scent. He smelled of rain, which wasn't surprising considering the down pour that had only recently stopped, but there was the faintest hint of another scent, it was a woman's, and surprisingly not Kim's. " Oh boy," he muttered, wondering just what had happened.


	5. Infiltration professional and personal

Bad as she wants me to be

Chapter 5: Infiltration; professional and personal

Author: RoguesKnight

Disclaimer: Sadly, still don't own anything but the plot. Kim, Ron, Shego, Rufus, et al belong to Disney. Disney lawyers haven't taken me up on the soul offer, so I'm now opening the bidding up to reviewers…I'll start at five cents…do I hear ten?

Author's note: To my reviewers, words cannot express just how hard you guys rock! You guys make writing worthwhile. So, a great big thank you goes out to: LusifromMexico,Scotty Boi, eckles, Sand Lord, labll52, BriandarkSoul, dbfox007, SkyMaiden, Vegeta666, Death Awaits You, Classic Cowboy, Akemi, harrypl, Bucky-O-Hair, ebonkinght, Joe Dalton, richie, Xeno, The shadowless one, vega, and J or The Blind. And, always, dedicated to my gorgeous fiancée, I love you.

It was just after sundown when Shego emerged from her home dressed in her characteristic green and black jumpsuit and matching gloves. She'd spent the entire morning and afternoon following Ron's departure trying to keep her mind off of him, but nothing seemed to work. Even going down into her basement and beating on the punching bag suspended from the ceiling with Kim Possible's picture affixed to it hadn't helped clear her mind the way it normally did. Now as she prepared to break into HenchCo for Drakken, she was beginning to wonder if being involved with Stoppable was a good idea, even if it served a greater purpose in the long run, considering how easily the thought of him could disrupt her focus. At least I was able to keep from writing Mrs. Sheena Stoppable in hearts like some school girl she thought as she headed behind the house Granted, it was only by destroying every single writing implement I could get my hands on. She pulled a remote control from a pocket in her suit and pressed the large square button in the center. Light rippled briefly at the edge of the woods on her property then blinked out, revealing the hangar built into a nearby hill. Drakken might not be the greatest at conquering the world she mused, moving quickly towards the hangar But he's genius when it comes to cloaking or camouflage. Entering, she allowed herself a smirk Of course, given the number of times he's had his ass handed to him by Possible, it's not really a surprise he's gotten good at hiding. She once again raised the remote, this time pressing a smaller button, set in front of the camouflage control, and the canopy of her personal fighter slowly opened.

Whereas most pilots required a ladder to climb up into their ships, Shego had never bothered with one. A carefully practiced leap and flip in mid-air and she was seated comfortably behind the controls. She jabbed a slender finger at the control to lower the canopy again and began the pre-flight warm up with a smile. Though Dr. Drakken had heavily modified the fighter over the years far beyond its original factory specs, it was really Shego's baby. It had been the first thing she'd stolen of any real importance when she'd begun her career as a criminal. It'd been all too easy to swipe it from the military by trading on her reputation as a hero to gain access to the base, and then disabling the craft's transponder and evading pursuit. The on board computer gave a soft beep, showing that all the systems were functional and flight ready. Shego fingered another control and a ramp extended from the base of the hangar, angling up sharply into the quickly darkening sky. Piling her long dark hair up on top of her head, Shego slipped on her flight helmet and took the controls. A brief yet intense blast from the engines and the fighter shot off the ramp and into the sky beyond. Sometimes living in the middle of nowhere comes in handy she thought with a smile No nosy neighbors to complain about the sound of a jet taking off.. Next to stealing things and fighting with Kimmie, flying was her greatest passion. Well, Stoppable ranks pretty high on the passion meter too She conceded before giving herself a mental slap. No matter how wonderful it felt to know someone accepted her for who she was and wasn't just using her for what she could do, she had to keep her focus tonight. Hench hadn't taken kindly to previous forays into his business that she'd made on Drakken's behalf, and losing herself in daydreams about her Ron would likely cause her to end up in trouble of some sort. Still she smiled, entering Middleton's airspace Wonder what he'd think if I buzzed his house. Tempting as the thought was, she had a job to do and it wasn't worth the risk of alerting authorities in Middleton to the fact that something was amiss. Granted, she'd be out of their airspace before anything could even get off the ground to investigate, let alone pursue, but the job tonight called for stealth. Maybe later she considered. Shego pulled back on a lever, kicking in the fighter's afterburners and reducing it to little more than a green and black streak against the night sky.

Moments later she entered the airspace surrounding Upperton and killed the afterburners. She wouldn't want to overshoot her objective; after all a second pass at HenchCo's building would give them time to get their automated defenses online. Shego flipped a toggle on the control panel and brought up a schematic of the HenchCo building. " There we go," she muttered tapping a section of the screen, " That should do nicely." Setting the ship down on the building's roof would allow her quick access to an air vent and from there into the building itself. She paused, it almost seemed too easy. This just screams trap she thought as the fighter quickly approached its target. And if I can see the potential for a trap, then Hench surely has to be aware of the possibilities. She grinned, just because it was an obvious set up didn't mean that she was going to make it easy for anyone to catch her. She toggled another switch and the roar of the fighter's engines was nearly eliminated, though they remained at full power. It'd been the latest modification Drakken had made to the craft, designed for stealthy entrances and exists without sacrificing power. " Here's where the fun begins," She whispered to herself as she set the jet down on the building's roof and killing the engines. She pulled off her helmet and shook her head as her raven locks fell free, trying to combat the threat of helmet hair One of these days I'm charging Drakken extra for messing up my hair to steal something he could easily pay for, just to see if he notices A predatory gleam entered her eyes at the thought. Despite countless horrible plans for world domination, Dr. D was no moron and her considerable pay reflected the fact; he knew that she was the best there was at what she did, and furthermore, he knew that no one else was enough of a masochist to actually endure his ranting and constant failures. " Hmmm…maybe I should see someone about that masochism," she murmured, popping the canopy and unfastening her restraints. Reaching behind the seat, she retrieved the small bag of supplies she kept on hand for infiltration assignments. She eyed the grate covering to the air vent, fifteen feet away before sifting through her bag carefully. " Lets see, smoke pellets, flash pellets, rope. Good to go." She carefully stowed the flash and smoke pellets in the hidden pockets of her jumpsuit and slung the coiled rope over her shoulder and carefully jumped out of the jet's cockpit, landing in the craft's shadow and pausing, every sense on the alert for indications that she'd been spotted. She waited for a handful of heartbeats, until she was sure no one had noticed her arrival, then darted towards the vent, a hand igniting in green plasma as she went.

A quick slash and the grate came free, it hadn't dropped a half an inch before she caught it with her other hand and carefully lowered it to the roof. Shego uncoiled the strong nylon rope from her arm and tied it securely around the base of the air vent. So far, so good. She thought, peering into the darkness of the vent. It was going to be a tight squeeze, but she'd been in much tighter places before and come out unscathed. Grasping the free end of the rope, she climbed into the air vent backwards on her hands and knees, shuffling slowly until her feet dangled in the air, at which point she lay on her stomach and pushed back gently, lowering herself into the shaft of the vent. Drakken's so getting the dry cleaning bill this time she groused. A short climb down in the inside of the shaft, and her feet brushed against another grate. Sparing a glance down, she could see dark red carpet through the slots of the grate and fought the urge to swear. Of course, the grate had to be in the ceiling, oh know, I couldn't possibly be lucky enough to find one of those nice air vents that are in a wall like Kimmie does Shego thought bitterly, wondering just why Drakken preferred his lairs' ventilation to be in the walls where one could easily remove a grate and pull it back into the shaft without being noticed Probably cheapest way to go. She and Dr. D were seriously going to have to talk about his financial frugality when she got back to the lair. At the moment however, she didn't have a lot of options left to her if she wanted to get into HenchCo. With a sigh, she let go of the rope and let her body weight knock the grate free. She landed in a crouch, and swiftly moved to a darkened doorway, carrying the grate with her. No alarms greeted her ears as she waited, heart hammering in her chest, and there was no sound of approaching guards to suggest a silent alarm had been triggered either. " Ok," she muttered cautiously peering around the doorframe, " One of two explanations. Either Hench didn't think anyone would be stupid enough to try coming in through an air vent on his roof and so didn't alarm it. Or, he's trying to build a false sense of security in anyone with the guts to try to break in and lure them further into his trap. She hated to admit it, but what she knew about Hench suggested the latter much more than the former.

Well, waiting here's just as likely to get me caught as blindly walking into a trap will she mused, setting the grate against the doorframe gently. Guess I'll just have to walk into it with my eyes wide open Shego grinned, almost feeling pity for any of Hench's guards that dared to interfere with her job. Cautiously she slunk down the hallway in which she'd fallen into; previous forays into HenchCo for Dr. D had familiarized her with the building's layout, and she knew that Research and Development was in a sub-basement four floors below her. It was the most likely place for the microchips to be stored. At the end of the hall sat an elevator and a door leading to a stairway that intersected every floor of the building. With any luck she could get into the sub basement without being noticed, secure the microchips Dr. D wanted, and make her escape, in a matter of minutes. " Too bad I don't believe in luck," she said with a smile. Hench didn't want to send men after her? Fine, she was done playing his game. Her gaze swept the ceiling until she found what she was looking for. She slipped a smoke pellet from her pocket and held it gingerly between her thumb and forefinger, slowly raised her hand until it was just a few inches below the smoke alarm and crushed the pellet, releasing a thick cloud of smoke that quickly spread to engulf the hall, triggering the fire alarms. " In case of fire, do not use elevator, take stairs instead," she mocked, retrieving two flash pellets from another pocket and setting them in front of the stairwell door before pressing the button for the elevator. She quickly stepped into the elevator and watched as the door slid shut. Shouldn't be too long now she thought. She was right. Moments later she heard the sound of the flash pellets going off followed by very panicked masculine shouting about not being able to see which was followed very quickly by metallic clanking and the sound of bodies tumbling down stairs and finally silence. Shego waited for a couple moments more, giving the smoke time to dissipate. When she punched the door open button , she was greeted by the sight of several of Hench's purple clad lackeys laying knocked out on the floor, fire extinguishers scattered about. Stepping over the bodies without a second look, she opened the door to the stairwell and found more of the same. " Amateurs," she muttered with contempt. A professional would have tested the door for heat before just rushing in blindly. Just because there's smoke doesn't necessarily mean fire after all. Shego allowed herself a smug smile, picking her way over unconscious bodies as she made her way down the stairs towards the R&D labs I'm really going to enjoy showing Hench just how professional I can be she thought.

Reaching the door connecting the stairwell to the sub-basement housing the R&D lab, Shego pushed it open slowly. She hadn't encountered any of Hench's men that were actually conscious on her way down the stairs, but her instincts screamed that there was something wrong with the seemingly empty hallway leading to the door to the lab. " You know Hench," she stated loudly knowing full well she was probably being observed from some unseen location, " I don't really like jumping through hoops to get what I want. It tends to make me cranky. So how about just shutting down any little surprises you've got set up and letting me do my job. It'll be a lot less painful for you." Not surprisingly, there was no response. " Of course we can just do it the hard way," she muttered resignedly. She retrieved her final smoke pellet and hurled it down the hall, and watched as it smashed against the floor, smoke slowly wafting up and spreading along the corridor. When the hall was halfway filled with smoke, thin red lines could be seen crisscrossing it's length. Shego shook her head, some people were just too damn predictable; she didn't know what the trip lines would trigger, but knew it would be in her best interest not to find out. She waited just long enough for the smoke to dissipate to the point that she could see the door to research and development and the trip lines simultaneously before springing into action. With a series of leaps and flips, rebounding off the floor, walls and ceiling in a constant blur of green and black, she made her way to and through the lab's door without so much as a hair out of place.

Sitting on a table in the middle of the otherwise empty lab was a briefcase laying open, clearly containing the microchips she was sent after. Shego shook her head and put her hands on her hips an annoyed grimace playing across her delicate features. " Oh, come on," She snapped, " You're not even trying to hide the fact that this is a set up anymore." Once again, there was no response. Shego growled and stalked forward, her eyes casting about for whatever danger the room contained. Reaching the table unmolested, she carefully circled it, looking for any sign that it was any more than it appeared to be. Finally she stopped, and reached out to close the case. " I'm going to feel really stupid if a giant boulder comes crashing down after me when I take this," she muttered. Without warning the table holding the briefcase seemed to come to life, with two cuff like protrusions rising out of it's surface to completely enclose her hands while two whip like tendrils snaked out from the table legs to wrap around her own, pulling her firmly against the table. When she was secured, the door to the lab burst open and ten of Hench's men strode through, leveling energy rifles at their captive. Slowly a video screen descended from the ceiling along the wall in front of Shego. When it reached eye level it blinked on to reveal the smugly smiling face of Jack Hench.

" Very well done Shego," he said, applauding, " I have to admit, you've outdone yourself this time. You demonstrated some holes in security that will most assuredly be rectified in the near future" The CEO's unspoken message that she wouldn't have nearly as much luck getting in as she'd had in the past hung in the air.

" Glad I could be of service," She retorted, struggling against her restraints. " How about letting me go since I've done you a favor by showing you those little problems? It'll save me some time and energy in not having to kick your goons' asses."

She carefully tested the restraints, pulling against them as firmly as she could but it was no use. Ok, if he doesn't release me soon I'll show him just how little he really knows about problems in his security Her hands were completely enclosed in the cuffs that had sprung from the table, but they didn't seem to be made of that high quality metal, it should take her less than a minute to burn her way to freedom.

" Oh come now Shego," Hench ran a hand through his increasingly graying hair with an easy smile " If I just let you go and word got out, every two-bit criminal who wanted the latest death ray or laser rifle would just come traipsing in here willy-nilly. It's just poor business sense, I'm sure you understand."

" Oh, of course. You do have an image to maintain," She agreed easily, " And so do I. So if you don't mind, I really can't stay and chat." The guards that had filed into the room tensed, raising their weapons in anticipation. Shego let a characteristic sneer form on her lips as she carefully surveyed the situation. They think those little pea shooters are really going to stop me? This is gonna be fun

" A moment more of your time is all I ask," Hench said with a sinister smile, " And I think you'll find it a moment well spent. You see, I've been studying you Shego, I'm tired of Drakken sending you to pick up whatever he's too cheap to buy. What I've discovered is most enlightening…your powers aren't some simple trick of technology" Her already pale countenance paled even further as he continued, " Oh don't worry. I didn't discover the source, you've buried your past quite well. But the knowledge that that wonderful flame of yours is generated by your hands, gave me the inspiration for this trap." He indicated her present condition, " while the metal is rather cheap, and I'm sure you could burn through it in no time, I doubt you'd like the results. You see, those cuffs are actually made from two layers of metal, with hydrogen gas continually being pumped through them by the connecting cables. Burn through and…I'm sure you get the picture."

Shego slumped almost imperceptibly, " What do you want from me Hench?" she asked quietly, the taste of failure, while familiar from her work with Dr. D, still bitter in her mouth.

Hench smiled, and leaned closer to the camera on his end of the transmission, " Just a little demonstration of your near legendary fighting skills," he replied " in addition to this wonderful little trap, I've been working on plasma resistant body armor, but there's only one way I could think of to give it a truly reliable field test."

A low growl escaped Shego's lips and she had to fight to keep from igniting her hands, there was a chance Hench was bluffing about the hydrogen but she wasn't willing to risk it; after all, a thief was only as good as her tools and Shego's tools were her hands, " Me. So, are the microchips actually any good, or was it just a trap to catch Drakken's attention and lure me in?" She was definitely going to have to "talk" to Drakken about when it was actually worth it to pay retail.

Hench beamed, enjoying the leverage he had, " Oh, they're top of the line super conductors alright, I don't make junk. I don't have the slightest clue what Dr. Drakken wants with them, but if you comply with my request for a demonstration, not only will I let you leave unmolested, but you can take the chips with you. I'd consider the demonstration worth well more than their purchase price."

Shego actually smiled, " Let me get this straight. I get to kick your men's asses, and get the micro chips I came for?"

Hench nodded " I take it we have an agreement then?"

Shego smiled and stretched to the best of her ability, " Hell yes." A predatory gleam sparkling in her eyes. Hench pressed a button somewhere off screen on his end of the transmission and she found her hands and feet were free. Without so much as a glance behind her Shego back flipped through the air and drove her feet into the head of the goon she instinctively knew would be aiming at her undefended back. He hit the ground hard and stayed down That's one down she thought, igniting her hands and landing softly beside his prone form, dark amusement dancing in her emerald eyes. " Hope you have a good medical plan boys," she smirked. A beam of energy splashed against the wall behind her and she flipped away again before someone who could actually aim tried hitting her. She landed nimbly with catlike grace, facing three more guards. Lets see just how plasma resistant that body armor is Thrusting her hands outward, she released a volley of plasma at each guard. The plasma slapped into the chest of each guard and seemingly dissipated with no effect what so ever, except for widening their smug grins. Ok, pretty damn resistant She dodged away as the guards brought up their weapons and fired.

She landed near the table holding the briefcase and grabbed the case, snapping it shut before turning the table over for cover. " Ok," she muttered, " so they can absorb my plasma, they still aren't better fighters than me though. Just gotta remind them of that little fact." A sudden sound from behind her caught her attention and she whirled just in time to catch a full power energy blast in the chest, strong enough to push her and the heavy metal table across the room, stopping only after impacting against two more guards and pinning them to the wall. Shego moaned, and weakly pushed herself away from the table. Note to self, don't get hit again The blast hadn't penetrated her jumpsuit, but she was going to have one hell of a bruise, and judging from the way her back was protesting movement, she'd have one there too. She stood and tried to slip into a fighting stance only to find her arms grabbed and pulled to the sides by two more of Hench's men as a third approached from the front, carrying his weapon loosely in his hands. She moaned, and let herself slump weakly in her captors' grasp, forcing them to hold her more tightly and giving the impression that she was wounded more seriously than she was. Just a little closer she silently willed the approaching guard. After what felt like an eternity, he was in range. Shego ignored her protesting muscles and pushed her legs out and up, catching the guard with a hard kick in the head, dropping him almost instantly. She let herself go limp and fall, pulling the guards who had been holding her arms into each other, their heads colliding with a sickening crack. Shego was out from under them and on her feet again before they fell to the floor. " Morons should have let go when I moved," she muttered in disgust. It wasn't nearly the challenge she'd hoped it would be.

Shego carefully backed up, keeping the remaining four guards in front of her. These four were obviously either the most intelligent or the fastest learners as they'd spread out, making it nearly impossible for her to take out more than one at a time. She leapt quickly and four bolts of energy splashed into the wall where she had just been. They're good. I'm better she thought, as she ignited a hand and fired a blast of plasma into the ceiling above the nearest attacker. His grin clearly implied he believed that she'd missed, until a large chunk of plaster slammed into his head and knocked him cold. The remaining three guards, finally realizing the caliber of the combatant they faced, pressed the attack, keeping up an unrelenting wave of fire in an attempt to pin her down and defeat her. Someone got in a lucky shot as she flipped away, a beam of energy driving into her left arm and actually tearing away part of her jumpsuit, but thankfully not breaking her skin. She bit her lip to keep from screaming, and cradled the arm close to her chest. It was enough to make her regret her personal belief in not killing without a damn good reason; and close though it may be, her damaged pride wasn't quite good enough as reasons went. She slipped her uninjured hand into her jumpsuit's pocket and grasped a flash pellet. It was a dirty trick, but the fight hadn't been a fair one from the first moment. She squeezed her eyes shut and looked away before slamming the pellet into the floor near her attackers' feet. Before they'd had time to recover, she was on them. The first went down thanks to a swift punch to the temples, as he fell, she grabbed his weapon and tossed it butt first into the throat of the second gunman who fell grasping his throat, conscious, but clearly out of the fight. Shego fixed the remaining goon with a glare, " Do you really want to try your luck against me all alone?" she asked coldly. The lone goon did the only intelligent thing he could think of, namely he passed out from fear.

The sound of clapping drew Shego's attention back to the video screen and Hench. " Amazing, simply amazing," he commented " Ten against one and you defeated them all with only taking a couple of hits yourself. My girl, you are certainly one of a kind"

Shego bristled at the my girl comment, and simply walked back to where she'd left the closed briefcase and picked it up. " You were expecting any less?" she asked, her bravado masking the aches and pains that she was now feeling as her adrenalin rush wore off.

"Absolutely not." Hench smiled, " Thank you for that wonderful demonstration. As per our agreement, the microchips are yours for the taking, and you'll be able to return to your fighter without being harassed by any of my men." She nodded and headed for the door, carrying her hard won briefcase, when Hench's voice brought her attention back to the screen. " And Shego? If you ever decide to give up thievery for that buffoon Drakken, there'd be a place for a woman of your skills and beauty here if you'd consider settling down for a nine to five evil job." With that the screen went blank.

Something to think about Shego mused, walking out of the ruined lab and heading back up the stairs, stepping over still unconscious bodies on her way. True to his word, there were no attempts by any of Hench's men to stop her, so she decided to favor her injured arm and sore chest a little more and took the stairs all the way to the door marked roof access and pushed it open slowly. Much to her relief, her jet was just where she had left it. Still wary, professionally so, Shego approached the vehicle, circling it slowly checking for any damage or tracking devices. Finding none, she opened the canopy and tossed the briefcase containing the microchips behind the seat before leaping in her self. Her muscles protested loudly as she contorted herself in mid-air before landing in the seat. "Damn it!" she hissed between clenched teeth. Shego glanced down at her injured arm where the energy had managed to tear away the cloth and could see an ugly black and purple patch on her skin. Maybe an evil nine to five job wouldn't be such a bad idea, she knew Hench could afford to at least meet what Drakken was currently paying her, if not exceed it and she wouldn't have to deal with nearly as much bruising and pain. " Nah," she chuckled, unable to see herself sitting behind a desk all day without going nuts. Besides she mused, piling her hair back onto her head and pulling on her helmet, It wouldn't give me nearly as many chances to fight with Kimmie She closed the canopy and prepared for liftoff, a gentle smile gracing her features as thinking about Kim Possible led naturally to thoughts of Ron. It's not too late she thought Maybe I can pay my Ron a visit after dropping the chips off with Dr. D. Spurred on by the thought, she kicked in the afterburners almost immediately, silently willing the jet faster towards Drakken's evil lair.

An hour and a half later the jet entered the hangar of Drakken's latest hidden evil lair in the Rocky Mountains. She popped the canopy and against her better judgment, jumped down to the floor with the briefcase, the resulting pain adding to the scowl on her face that caused the nearby lackeys to scurry out of her path. She allowed herself a tight smile, it was good to see that they knew who was in charge. Shego stalked through the bowels of the lair until she found Dr. Drakken sitting in her favorite chair and reading a copy of Villain's Digest. " What the _hell_ do you think you're doing in my chair?" She growled menacingly standing in front of him with one hands on her hips, the briefcase of microchips at her feet.

" Ah, Shego" He stuttered, quickly jumping out of her chair and hiding the magazine behind his back. " I trust the operation was a success?"

" Ah, yea," She snapped, pushing him out of the way and flopping down into the comfortable dark green chair. " Like there could be any other result when I'm left to work on my own?" She fixed him with a pointed stare, " The microchips are in the briefcase Drew. Now if you don't have any more wonderful little errands you'd like me to run, I'll be on my way."

Dr. Drakken did little to mask his glee over having obtained the microchips, though he did frown at her use of his given name. " Shego, for the five hundred thousandth time, don't call me Drew. It's disrespectful. And soon, you'll be referring to me as his supreme Excellency, ruler of the world." He let loose with an evil laugh, clutching the briefcase to his chest happily.

" Uh-huh, yea, whatever," Shego rolled her eyes theatrically, " So, you're going to go work on the next plan to be foiled by the princess and I can go home and get some rest is what you're saying." She commented sarcastically. She started to raise herself from the chair, and ignored her aches. Little pain now is worth it when I get to see Ron later she rationalized. She had almost convinced herself to get completely out of the chair when Drakken stopped her.

" Actually Shego," he hedged, " I'd like you to stick around to give the first phase of my master plan a run through. Now that I have the microchips, it shouldn't take me more than fifteen minutes to complete, and I'd really like your professional opinion."

Shego frowned; her professional opinion? He was really laying it on thick with that one. What could it hurt? I stick around for a couple more minutes, tell him my professional opinion is that he's whacked, that it'll never work, and then charge him even more for consulting services. The thought brought the tiniest of smiles to her lips, " Alright Dr. D. I'm gonna say something here that you've never heard, so listen closely. You win. I'll stick around, but as soon as I've seen whatever lame-brained scheme for global domination you've come up with this week, I'm gone."

" Oh thank you Shego! Thank you!" The deranged blue scientist actually pulled her out of the chair and into an enthusiastic hug, grinning madly.

" Ok, what have we said about touching?", Shego snarled, pushing Dr. Drakken away with a look somewhere between boredom and disgust, igniting her hands for emphasis. The effect wasn't lost on the not so good Dr. as he turned and high tailed it into the depths of the lair. Shego kept her hands lit for just a couple minutes after Drakken's departure, just long enough to make sure that he'd beat a semi-permanent retreat, before she collapsed back into the chair, extinguishing her hands. Well, maybe I can wait a little bit for him to show me his plan she mused, snuggling back into the comfortable chair and closing her eyes.

Half an hour later Shego was jerked from sleep by Drakken's incessant whining her name. Her emerald eyes flashed with fire when they came to rest on her employer, " What?" She snapped, Drakken had better have had a good reason for waking her from a dream of laying in Ron's arms, safe and accepted for who she was and loved, not in spite of it, but because of it. Loved? She shook her head, trying to drive the thought out. She didn't need anyone's love, and more over, if her plan to split Stoppable and Possible apart was going to work, she couldn't afford it.

Dr. Drakken cowered, trying to make himself as small as possible; he'd been on the wrong end of a cranky Shego more times than he cared to remember. " You were going to take a look at phase one of my world domination plan." He said, surprisingly meekly for a would be world conqueror. " You promised," he almost pouted.

" Fine, fine. What's this glorious plan?" Shego sneered, rising from her seat and stretching. The nap had helped take some of the edge off of the aches of her bruised body, but she was still a little sore.

" Phase one," Dr. Drakken corrected, puffing out his chest proudly, " of my fail proof plan, is this" He made a grandiose, sweeping gesture towards the far end of the room. A figure wearing a red and black jumpsuit, with yellow glowing eyes, or photo-receptors, anyway. A very familiar figure.

" A syntho-drone!" Shego screamed, her hands bursting to life with green plasma as she advanced on Drakken, who was wisely backing away from his enraged assistant. " You're great plan is to take over the world with a syntho-drone? You had me break into HenchCo, and steal microchips for a fucking syntho-drone?" Each word increasingly sharper than the last.

" Now Shego," Drakken said, holding up his hands pleadingly, " You and I both know that you're intelligent enough to express yourself without resorting to profanity." A burst of plasma slamming into the wall just behind his left ear convinced him that now was not the time to lecture her on her language. " And don't believe everything you see." He smirked " What has always been the fatal flaw of the syntho-drone design?"

" Hmmm…this?" Shego grinned evilly and fired another burst of plasma, this time into the chest of the syntho-drone, opening a large hole in its chest. Green syntho-goo began to leak rapidly out of the wound, and then stopped. Shego gaped in astonishment, not quite believing what her eyes were telling her.

" Exactly," Drakken gloated in the sudden silence, striding arrogantly over to his creation and draping and his arm over its shoulders proudly. " One little hole and they used to just go to pieces. The microchips you stole tonight allow me to route more power through their central processing unit without overheating, which means I can give them enough intelligence to realize when and where they've been wounded and stop the flow of syntho-goo to that area before too much structural stability has been lost. You'd have to take its head to take it down…if you could make it that far."

Shego snorted derisively, " Ok, I'll admit, it's an improvement. But it's still a syntho-drone. Kimmie will still wipe the floor with it and then there goes your precious plan."

"Ahhh," Dr. Drakken grinned, " That's where you're wrong. It's not just one syntho-drone, with the microchips you stole, I can build an entire army of syntho-drones." He held up a black gloved hand to forestall the argument he say brewing in her eyes. " As they say in the infomercials, but wait, there's more!" He turned to the syntho-drone, removing his arm from its shoulders. " You have your target. Attack!"

Only years of fighting instincts allowed Shego to dodge the drone's attack, barely dodging the punch thrown at her head. It was faster than any previous syntho-drone she'd sparred with. Another blow, a kick this time, came in at her mid-section and she swiftly stepped to the side, grabbing the leg and hurling it away. She watched as instead of going down in a heap like she'd expected, the drone spun almost ballerina like on the leg it had planted on the ground, and came back into a fighting stance. Impressive She conceded, studying her opponent, not that she'd ever admit such a thing to Dr. Drakken, his ego was bad enough without her help. The drone moved again, and there was no longer time for thought as she was forced onto the defensive.

The two combatants traveled the length and breadth of the room, seemingly evenly matched, blow for blow. However, one of the participants in the fight was only slightly more than human, and as a result, was beginning to wear down. She'd kept from just blowing the damn drone's head off with plasma and ending the fight because she knew its weakness and thusly had an unfair advantage. She wouldn't admit it even to herself, but the other factor forcing her to fight fairly was the fact that she was only very rarely challenged like this in hand to hand combat. In fact the only opponent to ever push her like this in a fight was Kimmie! the thought slammed into her with stunning force, enough to leave her open to an equally powerful kick to the chest from the drone. Shego went down, sliding across the floor, only coming to a stop when she ran into her favorite chair. It took all of her will power not to cry out in pain Of course it had to hit me where I already had a bruise she thought angrily. Looking up she watched as the drone approached Drakken's going to call it off any minute now It stopped a few feet from her and as it raised its right arm she noticed an odd nozzle like protrusion raising from its forearm. Yep, any minute now. She wasn't going to panic over a syntho-drone. A red and orange blossom of flame sprouted from the nozzle and Shego rolled away at the last minute. Her favorite chair however, wasn't so lucky and was reduced to ash in a matter of moments. " Drakken!" She yelled, trying to sound as aggravated as possible.

" Ok, ok," he said, trying not to sound too smug, " Cease attack". The syntho-drone stopped in place. " Still think that Kim Possible would be able to beat a new improved syntho-drone, let alone an army of them?" he asked, offering her a hand up.

Shego slapped his hand away, and pushed herself to her feet slowly. " How?" she asked softly, gazing at the syntho-drone with something close to respect. There were few living beings that had ever managed to best her at hand to hand.

" It took me a good long while to work it out," Drakken admitted, " But I figured out a way around your no cloning policy. I managed to pull enough intact video of you and Kim Possible fighting from old lairs' security cameras, and created a computer algorithm based off of those fights, to program the perfect fighting machines. You'll of course, need to train them, I mean a program is only as good as the data it has to run. The more experience our army gains, the more likely we'll be to finally conquer the world."

" Ok Doc," she said, hissing in pain as she took a deep breath, trying to shake off the experience of being defeated so handily. " I have to admit…as a plan, it doesn't suck." Gathering what was left of her pride, she flipped her dark hair over her shoulder easily and headed out of the room, letting the implications of what she'd said sink in. " Oh, and Dr. D? I'm going home now." She said popping her head back through the door. " Don't call unless it's important."

An hour and a half later Shego found herself sitting on a tree branch in Middleton, specifically, a tree branch outside the window of Ron Stoppable. After leaving Drakken's lair she'd flown home and retrieved her hovercraft, which was now cloaked and parked in the Stoppable's back yard. She'd considered trading her jumpsuit for something a little more revealing, but she'd changed her mind quickly when she'd seen how extensive her bruises were and decided she didn't want to worry him. Now she was perched in a tree outside of his window, cursing herself for not having the courage to just knock on the door. He was her boyfriend after all. Boyfriend she knew that she'd entered into the relationship for the wrong reasons, but the word brought a smile to her lips. Damn it, you are not to fall for Stoppable She admonished herself. Inching closer to the window quietly, she could hear Ron in his room talking to someone. If it's Possible she thought, a growl escaping her lips It'll be a toss up as to who I kill first . She'd never admit it, but Shego was jealous.

" Look, how many times do I have to apologize?" came Ron's voice, " I told you, I thought mom said they were leaving last night for the cruise, how was I supposed to know that they left before I did? You saw how worked up I was before I left last night." There was a high pitched chittering reply to the statement, and from her perch, Shego could see the mole rat climb up onto the bed beside Ron, and pat his hand with his front paws in sympathy. Shego couldn't help but smile as the jealousy she had felt thinking he was in the room with that red headed tramp faded away and was replaced by amusement. Strange as it was, she thought that Ron's relationship with the rodent was cute. She was shaken from her musings once again by his voice.

" Besides, you managed to get the fridge open anyway, so it's not like you missed out on food." A pause " You're really going to have to let me in on how you did that by the way dude." An indignant reply from the rodent " Aww..come on Rufus. What if Drakken were to use some sort of lame shrink ray on me an Kim some time? You wouldn't let me starve would you?"

From her perch, Shego smiled " Shrink ray?…well it does sound like something Dr. D would come up with." Finally, she crept to the window and tapped on it gently.

Sitting on the bed, Ron nearly jumped a foot in the air at the sudden sharp rapping on his window. He turned, and a smile of pure joy spread across his face at the sight that greeted him. Sitting on a tree branch that was butted up against his window, was Sheena. " Hey gorgeous," he said, opening his window and offering her a hand. " Just couldn't stay away from the Ron, could you?"

Sheena blushed slightly as she took the offered hand and crawled onto his bed through the window. He was just being flirtatious, and if he continued to refer to himself as "the Ron", she'd probably end up driving his head through the wall, but, it did feel nice to hear that someone thought she was gorgeous. " You'd want me to stay away?" She teased with a flirtatious smile of her own, " Cause I can leave if that's how you really feel."

" No…no…it's not how I feel." Ron said quickly, " Just surprised. I mean, why the window? KP's off with Monkey boy somewhere doing god only knows what, and my parents are out of town on a second honeymoon cruise. You could have used the door."

Sheena smiled, noting with no small amount of pleasure that he was still holding her hand as she sat next to him on the bed. The room was actually a lot cleaner than she'd expected. The only mess being the papers and school books spread out on his desk. Ah homework…can't say that I miss it she thought. She gave his hand a small squeeze, " Old habits die hard I guess," she shrugged simply. She left the fact that she'd often used the spot for surveillance before recent events unspoken. What he doesn't know can't hurt him. There was an angry squeak from the other side of Ron and Rufus scurried up his arm and across his shoulders to glare at Sheena.

" Hey Rufus," Ron chided gently, " Sheena's my girlfriend. At least while she's here, ignore the jumpsuit. She's off the clock." He smiled, and let his eyes travel slowly over her body, taking in just how skin tight the jumpsuit was at a pace he didn't have the time for when he and Kim were busy foiling Drakken's plans. His eyes widened as they took in a tear in the sleeve of her left arm, and a nasty looking bruise forming beneath it. " Rough day at the office?" he asked softly, looking into her beautiful green eyes.

" No questions about work Ron," she whispered, leaning towards him and planting a soft kiss on his lips. " There are going to have to be some limits in our relationship if we want it to work. You don't ask me about work, and I won't ask you about the hero gig. How's that sound?"

" How bad is it Sheena?" he asked, ignoring her proposition, concern flooding his chocolate brown eyes. She looked away, only to have him gently turn her head back with a finger under her chin, " Please?"

Sheena was surprised by the genuine concern in his voice and found herself responding without thinking. " Here," she said, standing up and letting go of his hand to strip off the torn jumpsuit. She never wore anything underneath, so Ron had an un obstructed view of the large dark purple spot on her chest and arm, she flipped her long black hair over her left shoulder and turned around to show him the equally large dark spot on her back. " Happy now? It's really not as bad as it looks. I just bruise easily, being so pale." She saw the questions forming in his eyes and cut him off with a finger against his lips as she sat back down on the bed. " Please, don't ask how I got them Ron" she said quietly.

Ron decided not to push the issue, " I knew it," he said simply, grinning broadly.

" Knew what?" Sheena asked, thrown by the sudden shift in conversational topic

" That you didn't wear anything under that jumpsuit," he smirked.

Sheena laughed, a strangely musical sound considering her normally dark temperament, and laid her head on his shoulder. " Smartass." She snuggled carefully, attempting to mask a wince as one of his arms found its way around her and not quite succeeding, " Is that why you're always tripping over your feet when you and Kimmie go after one of Drakken's plans? You're picturing me naked?"

Ron blushed and looked away, " Of course not."

" Liar" Sheena said, lifting her head and kissing him on the cheek " Sweet, but a liar just the same." She smiled, enjoying the moment.

" Hey, Rufus," Ron said, " Would you mind going into the bathroom and getting me the jar of Icy Hot?" The naked mole rat nodded in the affirmative and darted off, understanding that Ron wanted a moment alone with Sheena as much as he wanted something to help sooth the pain of her bruises. And Rufus was all too happy to get away. Ron might not have a problem seeing Shego naked and cuddling with her, but it was a little much for the poor little guy to handle. Once Rufus had left the room, Ron took a deep breath and looked into the beautiful eyes of his girlfriend. " I told Kim," he said hesitantly, " about…you know…us."

Sheena's face was an unreadable mask. " Really? And what did Kimmie think of the news?" she asked calmly.

" She didn't believe me," Ron admitted, " She thought I was actually lying about where I was last night and what happened. I ended up making up a story about getting lost in the woods and sleeping in an abandoned house"

Sheena chuckled, " Good ole Kimmie. Too dense to accept the truth of the situation even when it makes more sense than the alternative." She relaxed against him, leaning her head once again on his shoulder.

Ron softly tipped her head up before capturing her lips with his own " You're not mad?" he asked

Sheena shook her head, " Nah. It's funnier that she didn't believe you. Though why she doesn't seem to believe that you could end up with a hottie of my stature is beyond me."

It was Ron's turn to laugh, " Modest, aren't we? So if you aren't here to kill me for blabbing to Kim about our situation. And you're not here looking for someone to commiserate with about work….so what did bring you here? Not that I'm complaining."

Sheena fixed him with a predatory smile, " I'd have thought it was obvious even to you Stoppable. I thought I'd make a booty call." It took all the strength she had left not to laugh as Ron's face and whole head turned a bright red at the notion. " But since I'm kind of sore…maybe we could just cuddle?" she added shyly, looking away.

" I'd like that," Ron replied, dropping a kiss on her lips. A moment later the kiss was broken by the arrival of Rufus, lugging the bottle of Icy Hot with him. He carried it slowly up into Ron's lap and dropped it there. " Thanks buddy," Ron acknowledged. " Now, just hold still Sheena". He unscrewed the cap and took a liberal amount of the cream onto his fingers before rubbing it on the bruise on her back. He repeated the action for her chest and arm. " This should help take the edge off the pain," he explained, " I know it does when I get my ass kicked on one of those missions with KP."

Sheena smiled, feeling the cream start to work. " Thanks Ron," she said softly, " You too Rufus," she added with a smile and wink at the naked mole rat sitting in Ron's lap with the bottle of cream. " I really appreciate it that you're both willing to help out an enemy." She attempted to hide a yawn behind her hand, but it was noticed by both Ron and Rufus. " I've got a rain check on that booty call, right, sexy?" She asked with a leer in Ron's direction. It was too much weirdness for poor Rufus to handle, and he promptly passed out.

" Of course you do," Ron chuckled, picking up his unconscious friend and placing him gently on the nightstand. Standing up, he quickly shed the t-shirt and shorts he was wearing, revealing the fact that he wasn't wearing anything under them himself. " Sometimes I like to go commando," he stated simply off her shocked expression. " And for the record, I don't think of you as an enemy," he added turning off the light and returning to bed.

" Oh?" She smiled, as his arms surrounded her in the dark and pulled her down to lay beside him. " What do you think of me as then?

" My girlfriend," Ron answered, kissing her gently. Exhaustion quickly claimed Sheena, and Ron wasn't too far behind her in falling asleep; both of them wearing identical smiles as they drifted into dreams.


	6. Breakfast with Sheena Lunch with Kim

Bad as she wants me to be

Chapter Six: Breakfast with Sheena; Lunch with Kim

Author: RoguesKnight

Rating: M, language, sexual situations, etc.

Disclaimer: Kim, Shego, Ron, Rufus, Drakken, et al. SO do not belong to me and that is just sick and wrong. sigh it's also just the way it is. They belong to Disney.

Author's note: To my reviewers, have I mentioned lately how much you guys rock? You guys are the reason I write….you're also the reason I stay up til 3 in the morning to do it, but you're only partially to blame there cause I'm nuts and stay up late anyway. I'll try to keep updating as often as possible, so bear with me, please and thank you. Now in completely backwards order, a big boo-yah to: Duke ,duder,EviLAngelofDarkness, rabid squirrel HorusRei, Vaneguard, Joe Dalton, gamechamp85,Contraserj, dbfox007, The Incredible Werekitty, J or the Blind, vega, harrypl, Anonymous, BrianDarkSoul, SkyMaiden, Vegeta666, Classic Cowboy, eckles, Akemi, and Scotty Boi, and Sand Lord. And always, to the love of my life, my heart, my fiancée. Love you honey.

It wasn't the rays of sunlight streaming into the room and falling across the bed that woke Ron from a wonderfully pleasant dream involving himself, Sheena and little clothing. Nor was it the sounds of birds chirping in the tree outside his window. It wasn't even Rufus trying to wake his buddy up so he could have some food as was usually the case. No, the odd pressure on his chest would only be discovered if he actually opened his eyes. Don't do it he warned himself sternly It's not keeping you from breathing, just keep the eyes closed and ignore it. In years of missions with KP, Ron had learned to listen to his instincts, they had an excellent track record of keeping him alive; every so often however, he ignored them. This was one of those times. He opened his eyes cautiously, and lifted his head slightly to examine the unexpected weight on his chest, coming face to face with Sheena, smiling like the cat who ate the canary; her head resting on her arms which were crossed over his chest. " You're still here," he whispered, unable to stop the smile from spreading across his face with the realization or to keep the shock out of his voice.

Sheena laughed lightly, not moving from her position on his chest, " That's my line," she smiled in return before stretching just a little to give him a peck on the lips. " Good morning."

Great morning Ron corrected mentally I could definitely get used to waking up like this. Carefully, remembering the nasty bruises she'd shown him last night, Ron wrapped his arms around her back, letting his fingers play with her long dark hair. " Good morning yourself," he replied, " How're you feeling?"

" Much, much, better," Sheena sighed contentedly, giving him a meaningful look, " I'm a fast healer anyway. I can't even feel the bruises anymore, so you don't have to treat me like some piece of delicate china Ron." She could tell from the look in his eyes that he was planning on denying that that was what he was doing and she quickly killed the protest with a long, slow, smoldering kiss. " If you're going to hold me, then hold me so that I can feel it." She whispered huskily, breaking the kiss and shifting slightly upwards on his chest so he wouldn't have to keep straining his neck to make eye contact with her. Her breath was slightly ragged and she had to fight not to blush or look away from him shyly. Damn it she thought fiercely I don't do mushy or shy. I see something I want, I take it And yet, she couldn't deny that there she felt a certain satisfaction when his arms tightened around her, pulling her close.

Ron thought about making a smart-assed remark about her telling him what to do and asking if she was a closet dominatrix, but quickly decided against it. Wouldn't want to actually go and give her any ideas he reasoned. " Better?" he questioned, letting his hands run down the smooth expanse of her back. She shifted against him again and he bit back a moan, feeling his body respond to hers.

" Yes," she whispered, trailing kisses along his jaw line, " So, I'm thinking that now's as good a time as any to collect that rain check." Sheena ran a finger lazily along his side as she continued, " I mean, I'm here, you're here, we're on a bed and both naked and I'm feeling pretty good compared to last night."

Ron gulped, feeling blood rush to a certain body part at the suggestion. " Here? Now," He was suddenly profoundly grateful that his parents wouldn't be home for a few days yet.

Sheena lightly ran her fingertips over Ron's chest with a wicked grin, " Can you give me any good reasons as to why not?"

Ron's eyes darted about the room, finally coming to settle on Rufus, who was waking up on the night stand, rubbing his eyes with his front paws. " Ummm…there's Rufus. Do you really want to contribute to the delinquency of an innocent mole rat?"

Sheena's grin only widened as she rolled off of Ron's body, " One minute" she said. Leaning over the edge of the bed, she dug around her battered jumpsuit until she found the pocket. Slipping her hand in, she retrieved the remote to her hovercraft. " Hey, Rufus." She said casually to the slowly waking rodent, " The mini-fridge in my hovercraft is loaded with cheese. It's yours if you give me and my sex toy some privacy"

Rufus' eyes widened in shock, a whole mini-fridge of cheese just for him? " Ok, ok" he squeaked happily, jumping from the night stand, scurrying across Ron's naked chest, and taking the remote from Sheena with a heartfelt " Thank you". Holding the control gingerly in his teeth, he scampered over to the window through which Sheena had entered the previous night, and pried it open just enough to allow him to fit through. He paused long enough to flash Ron a wink and a quick thumbs up, and then was gone.

" We're alone now," Sheena stated simply, stretching out beside Ron and draping a leg over his, slowly sliding it up and down. " Any other objections?"

Ron spared a glare at the window where Rufus had escaped Behold, the power of cheese He thought sarcastically Strong enough to cause a mole rat to forget where his loyalties lie. He bit back a moan, feeling her smooth skin slide a little higher. Ron gazed silently at his lover, wondering just how to explain his hesitation. Finally he settled on the truth. "Look, Sheena," he said carefully, " it's not that I don't want to…you know…it's just…that first time was my first time and I was drunk…I just don't want to disappoint you in any way." He averted his eyes shyly, blushing.

Sheena was floored That was his first time? Damn it, if I use it to separate him from Possible, I'm no better than she is. As repugnant as the thought of being on the same level as Kim Possible was, she suppress a shudder to keep Ron from getting the wrong idea. You've done other things you haven't liked before She reminded herself. Pushing the thoughts away, she reached out and tucked a finger under his chin, lifting his eyes back to hers. " First of all," she said in a tone that brooked no argument, " You had one drink, and enough time passed between then and our love making that you were far from drunk. Secondly, I have no expectations for when we're together." She felt him trying to look away again and grasped his head more firmly. " I don't mean that in any way to put you down Ron. What I mean is that the only thing that matters to me is that we care about each other. I think you care for me, and I know I care for you."

Ron offered her a tremulous smile. " Really?" he asked in disbelief. She nodded. " Well, I should put some of those concerns to rest then. I lo….care for you too." He resisted the urge to kick himself for almost saying that he loved her. Not that he didn't believe his feelings for Sheena could evolve into love; if he was honest with himself he'd have to admit that the crush he'd initially had on her from the moment he'd first seen her picture hadn't gone away like other crushes, but now having achieved what many people would have said was impossible; an actual relationship with Sheena, he feared that she'd dump him long before he could find out how deeply his feelings for her went, and more intriguingly, how deeply the feelings could run on her end. Sheena's smile at that admission was the warmest and most genuine he'd ever seen from anyone, and he was pretty sure his heart was in danger of melting if she kept it up. Wrapping an arm around her back, he pulled her close and kissed her tenderly. " You really don't care that I don't have that much experience?" he asked, breaking the kiss when the need to breathe became an issue.

Sheena chuckled, a throaty, seductive sound that sent goose bumps along Ron's skin, " Of course not. It means I can mold you into the perfect lover for me." She pressed her leg up against his thigh firmly, a thrill running through her body as she felt him harden in response. " And you know what they say, practice makes perfect." She grinned, pressing her body closer to his And me alone she added silently. Pushing Ron over onto his back, Sheena trailed gentle kisses down his chest, leaving no inch of skin untouched.

Ron writhed on the bed, closing his eyes tightly, lost in the pleasurable sensations he was experiencing, only to have them pop open again when he felt her mouth surrounding his rapidly hardening member. " Sheena," he breathed through clenched teeth, fighting to keep his hips from bucking.

" Relax," She instructed with a wicked grin, pulling off of him for a moment, " just enjoy yourself, I certainly will." With that, she lowered her mouth down over him again, bobbing her head slowly along his length. It wasn't something that she would normally do for guys, in fact, many a guy had learned the hard way that demanding it of her was the quickest road to plasma based castration, yet with Ron it was different. He didn't expect or demand anything of her, just accepted what she had to offer without asking any more than she was willing to give. It would be unnerving if she just let herself think about what that said about how he felt for her, fortunately for her, thought was the last thing on her mind. Glancing up, Sheena made sure she had Ron's attention before licking his length in one long stroke, never breaking eye contact.

Ron let out a long shuddering breath, half wondering if he was still dreaming as another wave of pleasure swept through him. Teeth brushed his delicate skin and he drew a sharp breath but let her continue without interruption Just gotta trust that she's not actually planning on biting anything off he reminded himself. It was odd, just a few days ago, he'd have never thought of using trust in any sentence concerning the woman doing her best to drive him out of his mind with passion, and yet, it felt natural to trust her. A familiar feeling began to build in his body and he reluctantly tried pushing the raven haired woman away, " Ahhh Sheena…you might want to stop…" he blushed under her gaze that seemed curious, amused, and knowing at the same time, " it's not that that doesn't feel good…it feels wonderful, which is kind of the problem…keep it up and I'm gonna…"

"Pop like the cork on a bottle of champagne?" She supplied with an uplifted eyebrow and devilish smile.

" Not the words I was going to use…but that works too," Ron chuckled nervously.

" Good," Sheena replied, " I like champagne" With that she brushed his hands away and lowered her mouth back over him, taking him as deeply as she could. She had to fight not to laugh, when she heard the startled gasp as her words obviously sunk in, a gasp that was quickly followed up by a loud moan. Sounds close to the edge she thought time to push him over. She slid a hand down to his base and gave his testicles a quick but firm squeeze. She was rewarded with Ron screaming her name and her mouth being flooded with his semen. She swallowed quickly, careful not to let even a drop escape, and reluctantly released him from her mouth, sliding up the bed and kissing an obviously stunned Ron gently.

" Wow," he whispered shakily, turning his head so that he could look into her eyes. " That was….wow….I'm still seeing stars" He rolled onto his side and pulled her close, and kissed her. " Much better," he said breaking the kiss and brushing a lock of dark hair back behind her ear tenderly, " now I'm just seeing you."

Sheena once again found herself blushing, touched by the simple honesty of the statement Damn she thought I've blushed more in the last two days than I have in my entire life. If I don't get a handle on these emotions I'm going to be in deep trouble Oddly enough, the thought didn't worry her as much as it should have. She'd never admit it, but there were worse fates than being involved with Ron Stoppable. She was brought from her musings by the feeling of soft kisses peppering her breasts. " What do you think you're doing?" She asked, fighting a moan as Ron captured a nipple with his teeth.

" Getting ready to repay the favor," He stated simply.

"Not here," She replied with a smile as she squirmed off the bed, and held out a hand to him. Taking his hand in hers, Sheena padded out of Ron's bedroom and down the hall into the bathroom. She, of course, knew the layout of both the Stoppable's and Possibles' homes, but there was no need for Ron to know that. If he asks, I'll just say I had to find the little girl's room last night and didn't want to wake him up. She shut the door behind them and let go of Ron's hand, walking over to the shower and turning on the hot water.

Don't ask how she knew where the bathroom was Ron commanded himself She probably just needed to use it sometime last night, it's not like Dr. Drakken had her case the place or something, that's just your paranoia talking He smiled, admiring the view as she bent over to turn on the water, feeling himself begin to stir again at the sight.

" Enjoying the view," she asked, looking over her shoulder and smiling. Judging by the vacant stare she got in response and the rapidly recovering erection, she knew his answer. Sheena pushed back the shower curtain and stepped into the hot water, letting a moan of pleasure escape her lips as the hot water cascaded over her body. When Ron hadn't joined her after a few minutes, she reached back through the curtain and beckoned him with a curled finger. "Coming?" she asked seductively.

Ron snapped out of his daze and narrowly managed to avoid tripping over his own feet as he hurried to join her in the shower. " Wow" he breathed, taking in the sight before him. The cascading water had plastered her long dark hair to her light green skin, heightening the contrast. Great, I think she's stunning and all I can manage is wow? he cursed inwardly at his lack of finesse with women in general, and Sheena in particular.

" I'll take that as a compliment," she said, an amused smile playing across her lips. Sheena ran her hands slowly over her body, keeping eye contact with him as she did. "Now what're you doing standing all the way over there?" She teased, " You're not afraid of getting wet, are you?"

Ron smiled and stepped close to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her passionately, his tongue slipping into her mouth and caressing hers. Careful not to loose his balance, he slid a leg between hers, pressing it against her wet mound firmly, making her moan into his mouth. " That answer your question?" he smirked. Oh yea, the Ron's got it going on

Sheena batted water out of her eyes and grinned; the confident Ron was definitely an improvement over the stumbling buffoon she'd known for years. Pushing him back against the shower's wall, she roughly claimed his lips with her own. She could feel his erection poking against her hip and ground against him firmly, moaning with pleasure. " I'm yours Ron, take me."

Leaning back against the wall, and hoping that he wouldn't fall, Ron gripped her hips and lifted her up slightly before lowering her onto his erect penis. Ok he conceded as embarrassing as it would be for EMTs to have to remove my naked body from the shower, if I slip and break my neck because of this, at least I can die happy. Bringing his head forward to her neck, he licked the streams of water from her skin as he slid her along his length, earning a moan in response.

Wrapping her legs around Ron's waist, Sheena ground herself down against him harder, and attacked his mouth hungrily. Without warning, Ron stepped away from the wall, still holding her firmly and flipped around, placing her back against the wall, and pushing into her harder. The sensations were incredible, drawing a breathless gasp from her throat. Breaking the kiss, she gazed up into his warm brown eyes, finding the passion that she'd expected to see, but the hints of something more as well. It wasn't lust, she was well aware of what that looked like, what she saw was different, softer almost like the beginnings of…. No she thought Can't be what it looks like. I'm just seeing what I want to see The though gave her pause. Did she really want to see love in his eyes? She didn't have an easy answer, and it bothered her more than she wanted to admit. The feel of Ron's mouth closing over her left nipple interrupted her thoughts, teeth just barely grazing it, causing it and lower parts to tighten with pleasure. " You're sure you've never done this before?" she managed to get out.

Ron moaned as she tightened around him, drawing him in with each stroke, " Well, aside from the first time with you, nope, never done this before. Just have a very powerful imagination and an active fantasy life" he responded, before lowering his mouth to her other nipple and biting it gently.

Sheena was tempted to ask just how many of those fantasies she had starred in over the years, but as another wave of pleasure crashed into her, she decided that it didn't matter, the reality was definitely better than a fantasy. She was nearing her climax, grinding herself down onto Ron as best she could with each thrust, when he suddenly picked up the pace driving her over the edge and forcing her to bite his neck to avoid a scream that would have caused the neighbors to call the police.

The feeling of teeth sinking into his neck similarly sent Ron tumbling over the edge of climax and he shuddered, his legs feeling like rubber as he spilled inside her. Breathing shallowly, he slowly withdrew from her and coaxed her into setting her feet back down so he could set her down without dropping her. Curious, he reached up to his neck where she'd bitten him and winced, feeling very distinct teeth marks imbedded in his skin.

" I'm not a vampire," She said, leaning against the shower's wall, a lazy and contented smile on her lips, " You don't have to worry about turning green like me or anything." Though she meant to make the comment to sound light, she couldn't mask the bitter edge to the words.

" First of all," He said, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her close, " Green is my favorite color" She smiled in response, and though it could have been water from the shower, Ron could swear he saw tears brimming in her eyes, " and furthermore, the thought that you were anything like a vampire never even crossed my mind. I was just checking to see how much damage you did there." He smiled, " I've got a feeling that it's a good thing I usually wear shirts with a high collar"

" You don't have to, you know," she smirked, picking up the bar of soap she found sitting in the shower's tray, " you could always wear a low collared shirt and show everyone that you belong to me. I'm sure Kimmie would be just thrilled about that. Soap me?" She placed the bar into his hands and stepped fully into the water.

Ron chuckled, working up a good lather before sliding his soapy hands over her breasts " Yea, cause she'd really believe me anymore this time than she did the last time. But can we not talk about KP right now?" He slid his hands lower, narrowly resisting the temptation to tease her instead of just bathe her.

Sheena smiled, her eyes lighting up at his words Never thought he'd want to not talk about Possible she mused, turning around and lifting her long dark hair as best she could so he could wash her back. " Sure," she said easily, sighing in pleasure as his hands slid over her skin. " So, what's for breakfast today, my handsome, wonderful chef?" she asked, turning around and rinsing her back before taking the soap from him, motioning for him to take her place under the spray.

" Flattery will get you nowhere Sheena," he said. Catching the mischievous gleam that entered her eyes he added, " and right now, neither will seduction."

"Damn spoilsport," she muttered, soaping his front, and miraculously avoiding teasing, " Go ahead and turn around then"

" And what do you mean what's for breakfast," he asked, looking over his shoulder, " I cooked at your place, you get to cook here." He smiled, fully enjoying her hands on his back Hmmm…maybe if I agree to cook I can talk her into a back rub

" Got news for you Stoppable," She replied, " I can't cook to save my life." She spun him around to rinse off his back and grinned, " And if you're wondering about the nice and well stocked kitchen at my place, it's like that only because it's the best there was available, and I demand the best" She had to force back a giggle, at how quickly Ron's face turned tomato red as the implications of what she'd said sunk in. " Don't worry Ron, you fit into that category" She was rewarded with an even deeper blush.

She can't cook? He thought, fighting his embarrassment and turning off the shower With a kitchen like that? It's a crime against the culinary arts! Ron turned off the water and stepped out of the shower, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around his waist, before offering one to Sheena. " Well, I'm sure that even someone with limited cooking experience can't screw up cold cereal," he teased as she took the towel.

" Smartass," she grumbled, joining him and giving him a small peck on the cheek, " You're lucky you're so damn good sexually, or there's no way I'd put up with you" She looked around, " Is there a towel I could use for my hair?"

Ron smiled sheepishly, " You know, not having hair that long, it's not something I usually think about, but I can get one for you. Why don't you go back to the bedroom and get dressed, and I'll bring one in for you?"

" Fine, whatever," Sheena said, without the usual sarcasm, " I know you just want to watch me walk away in nothing but a towel. More fuel for your fantasies" She smiled, opened the door and walked down the hall back to Ron's room, putting an extra bit of sway into her hips. Hell, if his fantasies are what made him into a sex god, there's no reason not to help the boy out she thought. A wolf whistle sounded behind her and she had to fight the urge to respond with a blast of plasma. " He is soo making breakfast now," she muttered entering the room and slamming the door shut behind her. " What to wear, what to wear?" She asked the empty room. Rufus was obviously still in her ship, either still gorging himself on cheese or too stuffed to move depending on how quickly he ate. She briefly considered just slipping back into her jumpsuit, even with the rip in the sleeve, but somehow it just wasn't as appealing here. She wanted Ron to get to know her as Sheena, and there was little chance of that happening if whom he saw was Shego. Unfortunately, she didn't pack any extra clothes in her hovercraft. " Guess I'll just have to borrow some of Ron's," she chuckled " I'm sure I can find something he wouldn't mind me borrowing". She walked over to his dresser and began rifling through it for something that wasn't hideously tacky. Needless to say, it took a while. Finally she settled on a pair of smiley face boxer shorts and a white ribbed tank top that hugged her curves nicely.

Covered to her liking, she idly wandered around Ron's room, of course she'd observed it before, but she'd never _seen _it. Not surprisingly, on his desk next to the yet to be completed homework, was a picture of Ron and Kim, their arms around each other, goofy smiles plastered on their faces. A wave of jealousy rose in Sheena and she forced herself to not blast the picture into nothing. She turned away from the desk and continued her exploration of the room. There was a small bookcase beside his dresser, not surprisingly crammed to the brim with science fiction and fantasy novels " Like his life doesn't have enough adventure in it?" she pondered aloud. The cautious opening of the bedroom door halted further exploration. Sheena quickly turned to see Ron, one towel around his waist, another draped over his arm, back into the room carrying a tray with a couple glasses of orange juice and bowls of cereal on it. Breakfast in bed and it's not even my bed she thought in astonishment He's going to ruin me for other men

" Hey," Ron said without turning around, " I heard the door slam, and figured I'd gone over the line with the whistling thing, so I thought I'd make breakfast as a peace offering and I found a towel for your…" He turned around and his jaw dropped, " hair" He finished, unable to take his eyes from the stunning beauty before him. If it was even possible, she seemed even more beautiful in just his tank top and boxers, looking incredibly comfortable, than she had in the bar in Lowerton or in her standard jumpsuit. " Sheena," he breathed, " you're…"

" I know," she smiled, " wearing your clothes, but I kinda worked up a sweat on the job last night and the jumpsuit isn't exactly an appealing option right now. I hope you don't mind. As for the peace offering, you didn't need to do that, I wasn't really mad at you. Believe me, you'd know it if I was mad at you." She took the tray from his hands and set it on the bed carefully before removing the towel from his arm. She painstakingly piled her long dark tresses atop her head and quickly wrapped the towel around them.

" Actually," Ron said once his brain started working again, " I was going to say beautiful. I don't think I've ever seen you so relaxed, even when you're bored in Drakken's lairs and filing your nails you look tense, but now it's like you're a totally different person." She blushed prettily and sat on the bed beside the tray, " And, I don't mind if you borrow my clothes. You look much better in them than I do." He sat on the bed beside her and handed her a bowel of cereal before taking one himself.

" I do have to admit, you're more attractive out of your clothes than in them," Sheena agreed with a teasing wink.

"Are you suggesting that I go on missions naked from now on?" he grinned taking a drink of orange juice.

Sheena glared daggers at him, a low and dangerous sounding growl escaping her throat " Unless you have a serious death wish Stoppable, you are to remain as fully clothed as possible when with Possible." She fought to calm herself, fully aware that he'd been teasing. Damn jealousy she thought. They ate in an uncomfortable silence until Ron couldn't take it any more.

" Ok, I have to know, it's been something I've always wondered about. What do you have against Kim? Even before we became an item, your fights seemed way too personal for it to have just been part of your contract with Dr. Drakken" He tensed, knowing that there were only a couple of ways that she'd likely respond. One was physical violence, the other was leaving him without saying another word. Which was why her reaction to his question caught him completely off guard.

Sheena set her empty bowl down on the tray and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. I wanted him to get to know Sheena, I should have known there'd be some tough parts to it. " You've undoubtedly noticed how evenly matched Kimmie and I are when we fight," she stated without preamble, her eyes still closed as she laid back on the bed.

" Kinda hard to miss," Ron admitted, placing his own empty bowl and only half finished cup of juice on the tray before moving it to the floor on the far side of the bed and laying beside her

" Well there's a good reason for it. Besides the obvious that I'm just a damn good fighter," she tried to make the words light, but the cracking of her voice belied the true emotion beneath her attempt, " Before the meteor, before my powers and Team Go, I was the head cheerleader for the Go City High Gophers. I even tried to keep my position after I got my powers, people just thought my green skin made me more exotic. But I was young, and not fully in control and after the third set of pom poms I'd burned during practice, I was kicked off the team." She took a deep breath, and Ron could see the tears escaping from under her tightly closed eyelids. " So after that I threw myself into working with my brothers as part of Team Go, and for a while, it worked…but, we all know how that turned out." She opened her eyes, revealing a ring of red around her normal dark green, " When I look at Kim, I see that she has everything I ever wanted. She's the popular cheerleader and the teen hero, nobody thinks she's a freak and…" she paused hesitantly, " she has you."

Ron pulled her into a tight hug, " Had me." He corrected softly.

" You're telling me that you're just going to give up missions with her, maybe even join the Dark Side, just like that?" She asked skeptically, feeling her body begin to melt against his in his warm embrace.

" If you asked me to," he said seriously, looking into her eyes.

It wasn't the reaction that she'd expected and it threw her for a major loop. Part of her wanted to do just as he suggested, and ask him to give up the hero gig to come with her back to Dr. D. He's giving you a way to break up Team Possible and keep him with you a sinister voice whispered in her mind Take it.. And yet she knew that she couldn't do that; that asking him to make such a major sacrifice would destroy a large part of the man she was falling for. " I appreciate the thought Ron," she said, reaching up and resting a hand on his cheek, looking into his concern filled brown eyes, " really, but you and I both know that I couldn't ask you to do that just for me. It'd wreck what we're trying to build here, and I don't want to do that."

Ron smiled, feeling tears threaten to spill from his own eyes. It was the most romantic sentiment he'd ever heard from the normally cynical woman in his arms. " Ok.  
He said gently, " Just one more question."

Sheena frowned slightly, not sure she was up for any more deep revelations, " Ok, but I reserve the right to say no."

Ron smiled and turned his head just enough to kiss the palm resting on his cheek, " Fair enough. You stocked your hovercraft's fridge with cheese last night just in case you'd have needed to lure Rufus away so you could get your booty call uninterrupted, didn't you?"

She laughed, a magical, joyous sound. " No….no…it came in handy but that wasn't the real purpose of having a fridge full of cheese." She paused to catch her breath and continued, " a woman as active as I am needs to make sure she gets as much vitamin d as possible to stave off osteoporosis" She said mock seriously before breaking down into a fresh fit of giggles " Plus it helps reduce healing time for broken bones, which are an occupational hazard in my line of work. But mainly, I just love cheese... I used to be a big milk drinker too…but Dr. D and his obsession with calling chocolate milk cocoa moo pretty much killed that."

Ron found himself laughing along with her, placing the words "cocoa moo" on his list of things not to say around Sheena and gazing into her eyes, he knew he was in trouble. Not in the sense of Sheena was getting ready to blast him through a wall trouble, that would be a lot easier to deal with. No, it was more the Sheena was rapidly winning an ever larger place in his heart kind of trouble. The kind of trouble that had him tossing the "L" word around in his mind and feeling butterflies in his stomach. I'm so screwed the next time Kim and I have to go up against Shego and Drakken he thought morosely. He was rapidly discovering that he didn't want to fight Sheena, and he didn't want to see her hurt by Kim either. Somehow he didn't think he'd be able to explain to Kim that they should turn a blind eye to Shego's escape attempts and just bust Drakken because he was having warm and fuzzy feelings towards her arch-nemesis.

" My turn," Sheena said suddenly, a mixture of curiosity and mischief written across her face. " You're awfully comfortable snuggling with or kissing someone who's at least nominally been an enemy of yours for years now. How long have you…had feelings for me"

Ron gulped and rubbed nervously at the bite mark on his neck, wincing slightly as it was still tender. I knew I shouldn't have started asking personal questions he thought. " Ah….a while" he hedged.

Like a shark scenting blood in the water, she moved in for the kill, grinning broadly. " Oh, no. You get part of my life story out of me and all I get is "a while"? You don't get off that easily. Now, how long, and for trying to get out of answering, I also want to know how often I had a starring role in your fantasies"

Ron squirmed, blushing. " Ok, I've thought you were cute from the moment I saw you," he admitted, " I'm not sure when it developed beyond that precisely…I just started paying a little more attention to your end of the fights than KP's…and then the fantasies started…" he held up a hand, " No I don't know how many you've starred in…not in terms of exact numbers…lets just say that there've been more than a few"

Sheena smiled, surprised that he'd admitted even that much, she'd fully expected him to try and find a way out of it. He's just full of surprises, isn't her she wondered, caressing his cheek softly. " And how's the reality stack up against the fantasy?" she questioned.

" It doesn't," he answered, " The reality is so much better than the fantasy, it wouldn't be fair to even try to compare the two." He reached up and took her hand from his cheek, intertwining their fingers, and dropped a light kiss on her lips.

Much to her credit, and ever lasting wonder, Sheena managed not to blush at that. He's not too bad on the eyes, wonderful in bed, and romantic as hell, even if a bit on the goofy side she mused How on earth has Possible ignored him for so long? She gave his hand a soft squeeze, " So are you planning on putting clothes on other than a towel?" She leered suggestively, " I mean, if you're not then there's no sense in me having clothes on either. After all, I am a guest here, should try and follow the example set by my host"

Ron sighed and lifted his head just enough to see his alarm clock over Sheena's shoulder, reading eleven-thirty. This wasn't going to be easy. " Unfortunately yea…I'm meeting Kim for lunch at Bueno Nacho in about half an hour. Which means I should get dressed before she comes here looking for me. Unlike her, I actually care if my best friend catches me in an intimate moment with someone else."

Sheena's eyes narrowed, and she tightened her grip on Ron's hand. " Beg your pardon?" she grated through clenched teeth.

Ron winced as his fingers were quite painfully squeezed in her grasp. " When Kim dropped me off yesterday, we kinda made plans to hit up Bueno Nacho today sometime. And before you arrived last night, she called and wanted to do lunch. We're working on getting our friendship back on track"

Sheena took a deep breath and let it out slowly, fighting the wave of jealousy that had threatened to overwhelm her, and reluctantly let go of Ron's hand, taking no joy in seeing him massage his squished fingers to restore feeling to them. " You'd better get going then, hadn't you? Wouldn't want to keep Kimmie waiting after all." she said bitterly, flipping over so Ron wouldn't see the disappointment in her eyes. Guess he's not so different after all. Still wants to be with the normal, pretty, popular girl

Ron slipped his arms around her waist and snuggled up to her back, resting his head against her neck. " I could call her, tell her that I'm not feeling well or something," he offered quietly. " I mean, what's a lunch of Nacos with Kim compared to spending time with you?"

In spite of herself, Sheena was touched. She knew just how much he loved Bueno Nacho, she didn't understand his fascination with the often mediocre fare but it was part of his charm, and knew just what he was offering to give up to spend time with her. " It's a sweet offer," she said softly, flipping back over and kissing the tip of his nose, " But you should go. I don't like it, but we both know that she'll come looking for you if you're too late and I'm sure neither of us is quite ready for Kim to find out about us." She smiled weakly.

Ron sighed, " You just had to go and be the mature one, didn't you?" He wrapped his arms around her, giving her a quick squeeze and whispering in her ear, " You know I'm kind of crazy about you."

Sheena beamed, " I know you're crazy, we'll leave it at that. Now go get ready before I change my mind and decide I don't give a fuck if Kim finds us together." She pushed him away reluctantly, doing her best to hide her disappointment. It's too soon for them to be split up by this….I'm just giving them time to rebuild their friendship…then I'll let Kimmie catch us. That'll destroy them for good she reasoned, watching as Ron climbed off the bed and hurriedly dressed. Somehow she was less than convinced of her motivations.

Ron walked back to the bed, fully clothed in his black turtle neck, red over shirt and a pair of baggy cargo pants, smiling as he took in the sight of Sheena laying on his bed. A guy could get used to this he thought Even when she's being sullen she's gorgeous. " Gonna walk me to the door," he asked hopefully, " or just lay up here and sulk?" He smiled and gave her a playful wink, thankful that she didn't have a puppy dog pout she could use against him.

Sheena rolled off the bed and took his hand without a word, leading him from the room. They descended the stairs and reached the front door in an uncomfortable silence, neither really wanting to separate from the other but knowing that it was for the best. "Ron," she said leaning against the door and looking into his eyes, " You know I won't be here when you come back from your lunch with Kimmie, right?"

"What?" He asked, eyes widening, " You're leaving me over one lunch with my best friend?" He was sure his heart would break again if it didn't beat its way out of his chest first. At least it didn't have much time to rebuild itself he mused darkly.

" No," she almost shouted, realizing his misinterpretation, " It's just that I'm going to have to go back to my place in case Dr. Drakken calls with another job for me. I'm not leaving you over one lunch with the cheerleader."

"Oh," he said, turning an unique shade of crimson, " yea. I guess you have a point. I guess I just thought that you might want to stay here again. My parents aren't due back for a few more days and it's kind of nice waking up with you." Sheena raised an eyebrow and smirked. " Ok, it's really nice waking up with you." He amended, " So what do you say, are you sure you can't stay?"

" I wish I could Ron," she said softly, surprised that she actually meant it; reaching out and brushing a few stray locks of blond hair from his forehead, " But a Dr. D would get suspicious if I went without answering him for a while without a good reason, and a suspicious Drakken is an annoying Drakken, which just isn't any fun for me." She paused, seeming to think of something, " Why don't you come back to my place after your lunch with Kimmie? No parents to worry about, and no neighbors to get nosy either." She tried to hide the hopefulness in her voice, and failed miserably.

" I would if I could," he said regretfully, " But you live way the hell past Lowerton and tomorrow's a school day. If I had my scooter, I could make the trip easily and just get up early to come back for school. I mean if I fell asleep in class it wouldn't be anything new. However, some thief is probably joyriding the hell out of it right now, or worse yet, it's on its way out of the country in multiple pieces. As it is, I'm probably going to be late even if I run to Bueno Nacho, I'd never make it to your place on foot."

" Get going then," She said, pulling herself off of the door and opening it for him, " We'll see each other again." Sheena offered up a brave smile, " And I don't just mean the next time you and princess Kimmie decide to foil one of Dr. Drakken's "brilliant" schemes"

" You'll make sure Rufus is off your…ship…for lack of a better word before you go?" he asked, hesitating in the doorway, " Sometimes he goes into a sort of cheese coma after stuffing himself." She nodded and he took a step out of the door before turning back to face her, a smile on his lips. " Just one more little thing." Stepping back into the house, he swept her into a brief, but passionate, kiss. " You know," he whispered breaking the kiss, " If this were a movie, this would be the point where the protagonist professes his love."

" Good thing it's not a movie then, isn't it?" she quipped drily.

" Yea," Ron agreed halfheartedly, " Good thing." He smiled. " I'll see you later Sheena." He blew her a kiss and then turned and took off down the road, running as quickly as he could in the direction of Bueno Nacho. For once, the allure of Nacos wasn't as powerful a motivator as it usually was, as his mind and heart were back with Sheena. We knew it wouldn't be easy he reminded himself as he ran I just didn't count on it being this hard.

Sheena watched him from the doorway until she could no longer make out even the slightest hint of his form before slumping against the doorframe. " It's a shame that life can't be like the movies," she whispered before stepping back into the house and closing the door. " At least then I'd still have a shot at him after splitting him and Kimmie apart." She suddenly felt very alone and out of place in Ron's house. " I guess I should get going," she said to the empty building, heading back up the stairs towards Ron's room. But first, maybe I can do something about his missing wheels. It'd make it a little easier for us to see each other A secretive smile spread across her face as she picked up her pace, practically running back to Ron's room.

Almost twenty minutes after running from his house, an exhausted Ron Stoppable burst through the doors of Bueno Nacho, his eyes scanning the room for familiar red hair. Not surprisingly, he found it in his and Kim's usual booth. Her back was to the door, but she turned her head and noticed him, flashing a quick smile and waving him over. Here goes nothing He thought, making his way to the booth Just gotta act calm, normal. Not at all like a guy who's hiding a bite mark on his neck because his girlfriend gets a little rough. Why, oh why did I have to think about that now? Walking towards his oldest friend and trying to get images of the morning's activities out of his mind actually worked in his favor, causing him to trip over his own two feet. Only Kim's quick reflexes kept him from making a nosedive into the restaurant's floor, vaulting over the back of her seat and landing in front of him just in time to catch him under his shoulders.

" Same old Ron," She teased, helping him to stand again, " Eighteen years old and still has trouble walking like a normal human being in the presence of Nacos. I hope you don't mind, I took the liberty of ordering your usual." She took his hand happily and led him back to the booth, scooting over as far as she could and pulling him in beside her. On the table in front of them sat a grande size Naco and coke, and Kim's healthier, but not nearly as tasty according to Ron, salad and a diet coke.

" Ummm…KP," he hedged, casting a sidelong glance at the red head, " Not that I don't like sitting with you, but isn't this a little close? I mean, what if someone saw us and got the wrong impression?" Like Sheena, for example he added mentally, knowing that his girlfriend wouldn't like the idea of him looking especially close to his best friend.

" I thought you didn't care what people thought Ron," She teased, taking a bite of her salad, " Besides, since when has it been a crime to sit with your best friend?"

"It's not," He admitted, reaching for his coke and taking a sip, " and I doubt that Josh would have a problem with us sitting together. I mean, he knows that there's nothing between us." He quickly hid a grimace, not at all liking discussing the blond artist in if not positive, then at least neutral, terms, " But somehow, I doubt that even he's open minded enough to not be bothered by his girlfriend sitting with another guy and holding his hand" He lifted his right arm to emphasize the point that his hand was still clasped in hers.

" Oh," Kim said blushing and releasing his hand. Smooth Kim, real smooth. You just got back together with Josh and already you want to jeopardize it by looking like you're into someone else. Still, she couldn't deny that it had felt really nice to sit there holding Ron's hand. In fact it had seemed completely natural. I so do not need this right now she thought with a sigh I cannot fall for my best friend, it's just too cliché. Her musing was interrupted by Ron's voice.

" Ok, not that I really care, but in the interest of rebuilding our friendship I'm trying, so how'd things go for Mankey with the supermarket?" he asked with forced casualness. It was no real shock that he'd finished his Naco already, he had yet to meet the food item that he couldn't devour in under three minutes. Well there was Killigan's Haggis, but as far as he was concerned, boiled sheep's lungs served in its own stomach did not constitute food.

Kim sighed, turning to look Ron in the eyes, she knew he didn't like Josh, and had a pretty good idea of why, but she wished he wouldn't make his dislike so obvious. " He didn't get the promotion," she stated simply " In fact, he was told that if he didn't straighten up and soon he'd be out of a job. Apparently he'd been doing too much "daydreaming" on the job".

Yes! There is a God Ron thought, a bit evilly. Finally, after years of hearing Kim and other girls on the squad defend his daydreaming as part of his "sensitivity" someone else realized how useless it was to real world applications. Still, he knew that Kim had been looking forward to having something to celebrate with "Mr.Sensitive" and he didn't want to see her upset, no matter how badly she hurt him. Note to self he thought Really get masochistic streak looked at, it can't be healthy Offering up a reassuring smile he said " I'm sorry KP. I know you had your hopes up for him, it didn't ruin your evening too badly I hope."

Kim smiled, touched that Ron cared so much about her happiness. Of course he cares a small part of her mind raged He's been in love with you for god only knows how long. She brushed the thought aside, although not as easily as she would have once been able to. " Well, he just came over after the review and we…." She trailed off blushing.

Ron sighed, feeling a twinge of old pain in his heart I did want her to be comfortable with talking to me about anything again. He reached out and gave her hand a brief squeeze " Hey, it's ok Kim. We're working on this honesty thing. And lets face it, I pretty much know you to go at it like rabbits." He grinned and waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Kim gaped in shock, surprised that he was comfortable enough with the knowledge to joke about it so soon after catching her and Josh. Of course, he'd always been remarkably resilient. Still pretty impressive she admitted to herself I don't think that I'd even be able to look him in the eye if I caught him having sex with…ok anyone else, let alone be able to joke about it. She frowned, fighting the jealousy that surged up within her at the thought of Ron and anyone else. " Real mature Ron," she said crossly, " I was going to say that we just ended up cuddling all night. Well, I cuddled, he cried and bitched about how no one understands how hard it is being a sensitive artist". The bitter tone with which she spoke about Mankey startled both of them and they sat in companionable silence for a while, Kim working on her salad while Ron occasionally stole sips of his coke.

" Awwww…well isn't this sweet. The froob and the easy head cheerleader.," an all too familiar voice sneered, " Hoping that if you ply her with enough of this so-called food that she'll throw some your way Stoppable?" As one, Ron and Kim turned to see the source of the voice, Bonnie Rockwaller, standing beside their booth. Not surprisingly, she was wearing a black skirt just short of being obscene and a red top that clearly showed she wasn't wearing a bra.

Ron's eyes flicked from Bonnie's outfit to Kim's, a green crop top that exposed little more than her flat stomach, and cargo pants similar to his own. She has the nerve to call Kim the easy one?. He didn't care what she thought of him, but Kim was another matter entirely. " Just what the hell are you talking about Bon-bon?" he asked defensively before Kim could decide to get into it with the other cheerleader, knowing the nickname would get under her skin?

The tanned brunette slid into the booth across from Ron and Kim, grinning from cheek to cheek. " Come off it froob. I know that you caught Kim and Josh doing the wild thing the other night. How'd it feel to see what you'll never have?"

Kim cut in, emerald eyes flashing angrily, before he could respond. " And just how the hell would you know something like that Bonnie? If it's even true, I know how much you like your unsubstantiated rumors."

Bonnie's grin widened, if that was even possible. " Oh, this isn't unsubstantiated Kim," she said a little too sweetly, " I heard this from Josh Mankey himself. If you weren't aware, he likes to kiss and tell."

Ron could see the muscles knotting in Kim's arms and shoulders and had a pretty good idea of what was going to happen if he didn't do something and quick. Not that I wouldn't like to see Bonnie get her ass kicked he thought But this is not exactly the time or the place for it. " Amp down KP," he whispered. More loudly he added, " You know that she's just doing it to get a rise out of you. Jealousy's funny that way."

Bonnie shot him a withering glare, " As if, loser. I've already had Josh…in every way imaginable" she added the last with a superior in Kim's direction. " Hell, where do you think he learned the "I was scared" excuse from? I saw it on Sex and the City and told him that it'd work on Kim, and it did. So why would I be jealous of Kim?"

As the words registered in the silence of the booth, Ron could see the fight go out of Kim, along with her breath.. The revelation that Josh had just been using her to satisfy his own needs and that Bonnie had helped him to do so seemed to come close to breaking her. It was time to go on the offensive. " I never said you were jealous of Kim" he stated simply with a cryptic smile.

Both Kim and Bonnie turned to stare at him after that comment. " What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Bonnie sneered.

" Oh, come on Bon-bon. After all these years it's pretty obvious," Ron smirked. " You've got a thing for Kim and you're upset that she hasn't noticed you. Let's face it, you're the only one who's always watching every little thing she does, just looking for some imperfection that doesn't meet your standards of your ideal Kim. Her clothes, her friends, who she dates, none of it meets your idea of what's acceptable because you're left out of the loop and you so desperately want her to notice you. I mean come on, you seduce her boyfriend away and then send him back to her? What, did he run out of stories to tell you about what Kim's really like in bed? The only way you'd be more obvious would be if you were pulling her hair and running away." When he finished, silence reigned over the booth for a moment, then as suddenly as she'd entered, Bonnie rushed out, leaving Kim and Ron alone.

" My god Ron," Kim whispered in awe, " did you just out Bonnie?" She couldn't quite believe that her rival harbored any romantic feelings for her but after everything Ron had said, she was beginning to wonder.

" Not a damn clue," he responded with a huge grin, "As far as I know she's as straight as an arrow. However, I have a feeling that she's the type of girl who's going to obsess over everything she does or says to you now, just to make sure she's not sending any unintentional signals to suggest she's interested. Who knows, maybe you'll even get a few snarky remark free days out of it.".

Kim grinned, Ron had a point, Bonnie was ridiculously image conscious. "You're the best Ron," she cried happily, throwing her arms around his neck and forgetting for a moment how she'd been played by Bonnie and Josh How could I let myself be suckered by a pretty boy's empty words and never notice just how good my best friend is to me? She wondered silently, vowing to make things up to Ron. " You do know however, she'll eventually get you back for that."

"Eventually," he agreed, " But not now. Now we just need to figure out what we're going to do about Josh". He smiled as Kim removed her arms from around his neck and appeared lost in thought. She sat that way for a few moments before shrugging.

" It seems like Bonnie and Josh were just out to screw up my reputation," Kim said thoughtfully, " I think the best thing we could do right now is not let them get to either one of us. If we act like it's no big deal, then I'm willing to bet that other people won't think it's a big deal then they lose. If we make a big fuss about defending my honor or something like that then it'll just lend credence to any lies that they want to tell about me. Are you with me on this?"

" Of course KP, where else would I be," Ron said with a smile. Suddenly it was as if an enormous weight had been lifted off of the two of them and they began to talk and laugh, just like the old days. However, in a dark corner of his mind, Ron made a vow that Mankey wouldn't get away with just using Kim like that. Maybe I can get Sheena to give me some pointers on the most effective ways to get revenge without getting caught he thought with a smile.


	7. School Daze and other dilemmas

Bad as she wants me to be

Chapter 7: School Daze and other dilemmas

Author: RoguesKnight

Rating: M, language, sexual situations, etc. If you've read the previous chapters then you have an idea what I mean.

Disclaimer: I only own the plot. Sadly can't even claim to own Sheena, I'm pretty sure Disney's lawyers are bright enough to catch that little linguistic evasion.

Author's Note: Sorry it took so long to get the last chapter up. Only had one day off last week so I had to write a little over several nights. As usual, dedicated to my wonderful reviewers. In the order in which they've arrived: lab1152, eckles, Sand Lord, Vegeta666, Akemi, SkyMaiden, LoganAlpha30, charizardag, Bucky-O-Hair, campy, BrianDarksoul, Rabid Squirrel, BuckNC, Chaos666, Joe Dalton, Cold-Chaos, bad, Duke, The Incredible Werekitty, Whatever Star, HorusRei, exeditor, egohan, Merridian, and Kitsune6. And like myself, this is dedicated to my lovely fiancée. Welcome home honey! One last note, I've noticed that these chapters have taken a little longer to finish than I'd like and I'd like to thank everyone for their patience and support. With my wedding now less than a month away, it could take a little while between chaps, but I'll do my best to update as often as possible.

Now, on with the show.

The walk to school the next day found Ron surprisingly deep in thought. After the blow up with Bonnie at Bueno Nacho, he and Kim had spent an hour just catching up on their lives without secrets. Well, maybe one secret he thought stealing a glance at the red head walking beside him apparently lost in her own thoughts. No matter how much she claims to respect me and my decisions, Kim will just never believe that I could honestly have feelings for Shego without somehow being controlled by her . Aside from that one, huge secret, they'd shared everything, just like they used to. Kim had confessed that the reason she hadn't told him when she first became sexually involved with Josh was that she'd been embarrassed about it. Apparently, Mankey had kept up the pressure on her until she gave in just to shut him up. A growl escaped his throat and he flicked his gaze to the side, checking to see if Kim had noticed. Fortunately, she hadn't. Mankey he seethed silently I promised Kim that I wouldn't make a big show of defending her honor, so I'm just going to have to settle for a little show. Ron wouldn't have cared if Bonnie and Josh had targeted his reputation, he didn't really care what people thought of him by and large, it was one of the benefits of being a social outcast. Kim, on the other hand, did care what people thought of her and when they'd attacked her, they'd crossed a line that should have never been crossed. Mankey and Rockwaller have just moved to the top of my shit list he thought darkly. Whether Kim liked it or not, there was no way they were going to get away with it. Of course, Ron didn't have a clue as to how he'd get back at them, though making planting the suggestion in Bonnie's mind that her feelings for Kim were more than just the hatred she showed everyone was a good start. I wish I could have taken a picture, her face was priceless he thought with a grin. Glancing over at his best friend, he could only wonder at what she was thinking and going through. Sympathetically, knowing that whatever he felt it was probably worse considering that she'd been the target of Josh and Bonnie's attack, he reached out and took her hand in his, giving it a supportive squeeze.

Kim offered Ron a shaky smile, squeezing his hand back and chalking up the fluttering of her heart at the action to not wanting to deal with what lay ahead of them, and not any sort of attraction to her oldest friend. You're just in rebound mode she thought and Ron's an available and supportive guy. That's all. What's more is that it would be wrong to jump into a relationship with him just because you're hurting. She sighed, not quite believing her own reasoning. For what seemed like the millionth time since Bonnie's little revelation Kim wished that she hadn't let Josh in to talk to her Friday. Maybe if I hadn't Ron wouldn't just be holding my hand because he's worried about me She quickly shut the thought down, feeling a sudden heat in her cheeks and hoping Ron wouldn't notice. Middleton High was finally in sight and her hand reflexively tightened on Ron's. Deep breath Kim She coached herself, fighting her rising anxiety You can do anything. You've saved the world for crying out loud, on multiple occasions. High school is so not the drama in comparison. It would have been great if she actually believed that.

Upon entering the school, Ron felt the hairs on his neck stand up. Something was wrong; as they approached people would stop talking and stare or look in the other direction innocently. He even thought he heard the occasional snicker. Even Rufus seemed to pick up on the awk-weirdness, poking his head out of Ron's pants pocket and looking around warily. " KP," Ron whispered, letting go of the red head's hand, " I don't want to jinx us or anything, but I've got a bad feeling about this."

Kim nodded silently, subconsciously preparing for a fight, her muscles tensing noticeably. It wasn't out of the ordinary for her enemies to attack her in heavily populated areas, even at school on occasion, but there was no way that any of them could get the entire school to react like this. " I hate to admit it Ron, but I'm picking up on the seriously weird vibes too." The feeling only intensified as they approached Kim's locker. A large group of people stood in front of it murmuring amongst themselves, only to grow silent and nervously parted. The cause of the disturbance was immediately obvious. Posted on Kim's locker was a picture of Kim in her cheerleading uniform sprawled on her back on the gym floor; the reality behind the picture had been that Bonnie hadn't properly been focused on the routine and knocked Kim over and added insult to injury by taking a picture on her cell phone and threatening to submit it to the year book for publication, but what had her seeing red was the message underneath the picture. It read " For a good time, call Kim Possible. She can do anything.". Tears brimmed in her eyes and she spun away from the locker, her hurt gaze sweeping over the assembled students. " Why?" She asked breathlessly, she already knew whom. After all she had done, why would they just stand by and let Bonnie get away with such a thing? The sound of paper being ripped let her know that she still had at least one friend left. What would I do without Ron? she wondered He's always got my back.

Tearing the picture to the smallest pieces he could manage, Ron had to fight the urge to force his way through the throng of students until he found Rockwaller or Mankey and then make them regret their little prank before making them pay for it, consequences be damned. Amp down Ron he chided himself Kim needs you to keep cool and not go flying off the handle here, cause it looks like she's pretty close to the edge herself. He tapped his pants pocket containing Rufus gently to get the mole rat's attention. " Think you can take care of the trash buddy?" he asked, handing Rufus the shredded remnants of the picture, " I'd do it myself but I think Kim needs all the support she can get right now." Rufus chattered at him indignantly, but took the scraps. " I know you support her too Rufus, didn't mean to imply that you don't. But you're the best man for the job right now. You're small enough to get through the crowd quickly. It'd take me at least twice as long to go and get back as you." Rufus seemed to consider it before accepting Ron's logic with a thumbs up before he climbed out of the comfort of his pocket and scurrying off to dispose of the trash. " It'll be ok Kim," he said tenderly, walking up behind her and dropping a hand on her shoulder. No matter how badly he'd been hurt by seeing her and Mankey together, he wouldn't have wished this on her. Much to his surprise, Kim spun around and threw herself into his arms, sobbing against his neck. He was torn between comforting her and just trying to get her away from the crowd so she could compose herself when the whirl-click of a digital camera caught his attention. His eyes swept the gathered students until he found the source. It was obvious really. Standing on the edge of the group was Bonnie, holding her cell phone triumphantly, with Josh hanging on her arm, both grinning smugly. He was sorely tempted to push Kim away and shove that cell phone somewhere rather inappropriate but was stalled, if not completely stopped, by a familiar stern voice.

" Alright people," Steve Barkin shouted, " Bell's about to ring, and unless you're going for the world record of highest number of high school students put in detention at once, I'd suggest getting to class. Normally the sight of the broadly shouldered man in the brown suit and maroon power tie was a powerful motivator. Today however, none of the students seemed to even notice and he had to force his way to the center of the group to see just what it was that held everyone's attention. " Possible, Stoppable, you know there's no public displays of affection tolerated in this school. I don't care how often you've saved the world….." he trailed off as Kim released Ron and turned to face him, her eyes were red and fresh tear tracks were evident on her cheeks. The shock of the sight completely derailed his train of thought, before he could stop himself he asked, " What happened?" He'd seen the young woman in front of him battle psychopaths with a smile and smart-assed quips, and yet in no danger in the middle of her school, she looked as if her world was on the verge of collapse.

" It's no big, Mr. Barkin," Kim said, offering him her bravest smile, " Just personal issues. I'm ok. But I should get to class, like everybody else" She hurriedly pushed her way past Mr. Barkin and the assembled students and fled down the hall. With the scene effectively over, the crowd began to disperse. Ron waited until he felt the familiar sensation of Rufus climbing back up his pant leg and settling into his pocket before he started on his way to class himself.

"Hold it for a minute Stoppable," Mr. Barkin said, sounding for the first time that Ron could remember, uncomfortable. " Is everything alright with Possible?"

Ron briefly considered lying to the older man as Kim had, but thought better of it. It does affect things here at the school, I guess he does have a right to know Ron reasoned. " I honestly don't know Mr. Barkin." The administrator nodded silently and Ron quickly explained what the cause of the commotion was, leaving out the choice bits as to why the message on the picture had affected Kim the way it had.

Mr. Barkin rubbed his chin thoughtfully, " It's a shame that you had to destroy the picture," he said, holding up a hand before Ron could argue. " Not that I disapprove of what you did. If you still had it, I could make a pretty decent case for getting Mankey and Rockwaller suspended for a week or so." He paused and checked his watch, " But things are what they are, and in about thirty seconds you're going to be late Mr. Stoppable. So I'd suggest running to class, I'll cut you some slack on the no running in the halls this time." Ron nodded and took off down the hall only to be stopped once more by Mr. Barkin's voice. " And Stoppable…if you find any more of Bonnie's little presents, just let me handle it. I don't want you flying off the handle thinking you need to defend Possible's honor." Without waiting for a response, Mr. Barkin turned and walked back towards his office, wondering what the world was coming to. Kids these days he groused silently, shaking his head in disbelief When I was a student you just had to worry about being given a wedgie or at the worst having your underwear run up the flag pole while you were still in them.

Ron watched the administrator walk away, not quite sure to make of the older man's distaste for Bonnie and Josh, but adding Mr. Barkin to his list of decent people for it nonetheless. As the tardy bell began to ring, he took off down the hall towards his first class of the day, wishing that it was one of the ones he had with Kim. He had the strangest feeling that things were going to get worse before they got better. It turned out that his feeling was right. He'd made it to class just seconds before the bell finished ringing, and once again all conversation amongst the students stopped as all eyes turned to him. He sighed, knowing the speculation as to his and Kim's relationship had turned once more to the "more than friends" end of the spectrum after Bonnie and Josh's little stunt. Walking to his seat he did his best to avoid eye contact with anyone and once seated stared directly at the blackboard as the teacher droned on and on about the civilization of ancient Mesopotamia. Despite the boredom inspired by the lecture topic, Ron's constant attention to the information being presented prevented him from avoiding the wadded up ball of paper thrown in his direction. It skittered across his desk, startling him and provoking a yelp of surprise before it fell off.

" I had no idea that the irrigation methods of the ancient Mesopotamians would be so stimulating to you Mr. Stoppable," the teacher, a thin, balding man with wire framed glasses observed dryly, glaring at Ron, a stern frown firmly in place. " Care to share your thoughts?"

" No, I'm good. But thanks for asking," Ron replied with a sheepish smile. The frown deepened slightly before the teacher turned back to the board and his lecture. Ron let go a silent sigh of relief and as soon as he was sure the coast was clear he bent over and picked it up and uncurled it. Inside was a message from Tom Jenkins, the football team's star running back, inquiring as to whether or not Kim really would do anything, and more to the point if she'd do anything with him. A powerful rage erupted in Ron as he craned his neck around to glare at the dark haired athlete, who only grinned in response. Ron was tempted to send a reply to the note, but somehow found the strength to hold it in check. After all, both Kim and Mr. Barkin had warned him about doing anything stupid to defend her honor. They'd probably consider me responding by breaking his nose with my book over reacting Ron mused. Too bad. The rest of the class passed slowly, and as soon as the bell rang Ron was out of his seat like a shot before Jenkins could approach him in person and ask his question. The rest of the school day passed in a similar fashion, with numerous guys asking about Kim or alternately telling him what they'd like to do with her in fairly detailed descriptions. Even in the classes he shared with Kim he wasn't able to offer any comfort and support because as soon as the teachers realized all eyes were on the two of them, they were separated to opposite sides of the room. It's just not fair Ron thought angrily, as he walked towards his final class of the day, gym. Kim and I are the innocent ones here and yet we're being treated like the trouble makers Fortunately they wouldn't be expected to stay separated in gym, and they could watch each other's backs if needed. Unfortunately, Ron would never make it to the gym itself.

Walking into the boys' locker room, he heard something that made his rage boil over, he automatically recognized the speaker as Mankey, and as much as Ron disliked the other blonde boy it wasn't his voice alone that pushed Ron over the edge into action. Rather it was his words.

" I'm telling ya Brick," Josh was saying as he changed for gym, " it's true. She not only can do anything but will do anything, and I mean anything. Especially if you remember to say please beforehand and thank you afterwards." The remark brought guffaws and knee slaps from the assembled young men in the locker room, including Jenkins. Much to his credit, Brick Flagg looked uncomfortable with where the conversation was going, as having seen Kim Possible in action, he'd developed a deep respect for the young woman.

" Why don't you just shut up?" the football player snapped angrily, " You and Bonnie have had your fun, so why don't you just leave it alone?"

" Because," Mankey replied, slipping on his Middleton High gym shirt, " It's fun, and easy to keep going. Sort of like Possible herself. I mean there's this one trick I did with my tongue that really set her off. I almost went deaf from the screaming."

"Care to repeat that Monkey Boy?" Ron asked from directly behind the blond artist, a coldness just under the surface of his words that made the more perceptive men in the room back away slowly, looking from Josh to Ron and back nervously. Even Rufus was put off by the tone, and scampered out of his pocket, shivering theatrically and scurrying for cover, glancing over his shoulder at his friend with deep concern.

Mankey turned, a smug smile on his lips, " Sure thing froob. I was just saying that Kim's a real screamer. I'm sure you'd know that now yourself if you'd had the balls to make a move. Guess I just got there first. How's that make you feel?". A hush fell over the locker room as everyone waited to see just how Ron would react.

Ron gave one of his trademark "harmless dopey sidekick" grins, some semblance of life returning to his brown eyes and there was a collective sigh of relief. " I feel pretty good about it," he said casually, " Kim and I are just best friends. I'd never dream of messing that up by trying to make a move." He fought to keep a grin off his face, it was obvious that Mankey was buying it, hook, line and sinker. " Besides, I don't really relish the thought of Mr. Dr. Possible giving me a nice look at the inner workings of a deep space probe. You might want to look out for that little talk. I think he's serious." He turned away as if heading to his own locker and let the light in his eyes die once again Wait for it he coached himself His guard's down, just wait for the opening. He didn't have long to wait.

" I'm not afraid of her old man. He's just a lot of hot air," Josh said confidently to Ron's back.

Almost faster than anyone could follow, Ron spun around and drove a fist into Josh's gut. The air left the artist with a loud "oof" as he doubled over, grabbing at his mid-section. Ron followed up with a knee to Josh's head, releasing a stream of blood from his nose and causing him to fall over, looking up at Ron in a mixture of shock and pain. " You know, I don't really care if you're afraid of Mr. Dr. P., though I tell you, he's fiercely protective of his little girl, so I wouldn't write him off as just full of hot air. But that's not the point, because no matter how bad he can be, I'm worse. You and Bonnie cut Kim pretty deeply this time, and you're going to pay for it. This is just the beginning. If you ever go near Kim again, or even think about it, you're going to wish Mr. Dr. P had put you into a deep space probe. Got it?". He received a weak nod from Mankey's prone form and once again turned and walked away towards his own locker. " Coming Rufus?" he asked casually without even looking over his shoulder. The mole rat scampered out from under the bench that had served as his hiding spot and ran after Ron, casting a worried look at the still prone Mankey.

They had almost reached his locker when they were stopped by a new challenger. " You think you're tough cause you kicked the crap out of an unprepared artist?" Tom Jenkins sneered, his face a mask of contempt as Ron turned to face him, slipping into a fighting stance as he did so. " Why don't you try it on someone who knows how to fight?" he added raising his fists and rushing towards Ron. He was so intent on proving himself against Ron that he failed to see the locker door opening in front of his charge. He ran directly into it and fell to the floor at the owner of the locker's feet whimpering.

Ron allowed some of the shock he felt to show through on his face as he gaped at the man who had opened the locker and halted Jenkins' ill thought out charge. Brick Flagg. " Ah…Brick…" he said hesitantly, not sure just what to make of the football player's action " Thanks." He stepped forward and extended his hand and Rufus climbed up to his shoulder and ran down his arm to offer a paw to Brick as well.

" I know we haven't always seen eye to eye," Brick say, shaking Ron's hand firmly before giving Rufus a gentle handshake as well, " But Kim is one of the most amazing people I've ever met, and didn't deserve what she got from Josh and Bonnie. I should be thanking you for taking Mankey down a peg or ten. Tom's just a moron who was looking for a fight. If I hadn't stopped him, you would have." The two men shared look of mutual respect for a moment before Brick interrupted the silence. " Look Ron, we were supposed to be out on the floor a good five minutes ago. Why don't you stay back and compose yourself, I'm sure someone will come to investigate. As for the rest of us," he said elevating his voice, " We'd better get out on the floor, now." Slowly the other teens filed out of the locker room, gazing at the bodies on the floor or at Ron on their way.

When the last teen had left the room, Ron let himself slump to the floor, leaning back against the bank of lockers and shaking. " What's wrong with me Rufus?" he asked his long time friend, and received a shrug in response and a pat on the leg. " I mean, I'm not the violent type…but I can't say that I didn't like it, even though I know I shouldn't."

" Not exactly what I wanted to hear Stoppable." A voice came from above him. Ron looked up to the source and wasn't surprised to find Mr. Barkin standing above him. " My office, now." Ron sighed, knowing what was coming next and thankful once again that his parents were out of town so he wouldn't be immediately grounded for his actions. Mr. Barkin waited until Ron had left the locker room before allowing a tight smile to flash across his face as he took in the sight of Mankey just beginning to struggle to his feet. Not bad Stoppable he thought. " Mankey," he ordered, startling the young man, " Get yourself to the nurse's office to get checked out and take Jenkins with you. I have to go deal with Stoppable."

Five minutes later Mr. Barkin entered his office to find Ron sitting in the chair in front of his desk, his head buried in his hands, his pet mole rat sat on the corner of the desk, mirroring Ron's posture perfectly. To the casual observer, it looked like the young man was going a pretty good job of beating himself up over his actions in the locker room. " If you're planning on the you're already punishing yourself more than I could defense, it's not going to fly Ronald," he said shutting the door behind him and walking to his seat, " But you get points for having the guts to give it a shot."

Ron looked up and gave Mr. Barkin a weak smile, " Actually no, I wasn't thinking of that but I'll have to keep it in mind for future use. I was just wondering what the hell happened to me back there to make me react like that. I mean it's not exactly my business who KP's involved with, you know?"

"It isn't?" Mr. Barkin asked, with a raised eyebrow as he slid into his comfortable leather chair. " The way I see it, it's only natural that you're concerned about her personal life and that she should be interested in yours. You two spend a good portion of your time fighting for your lives to save the world. You have to be able to count on the other having their head in the game and not worried about the what the person they're dating is or isn't going to think about them. What Mankey and Rockwaller have done has obviously deeply affected both of you, and just between you and me, I think Mankey got what's coming to him in the locker room. After all, his actions could affect the fate of the world."

Ron brightened, and even Rufus perked up a bit. " I have to admit I hadn't thought about it like that before." He said, " I just really wanted to wipe that smug grin off his face."

Mr. Barkin nodded quietly, " I can sympathize Ronald. However, I can't just let you get away with taking out your personal grievances during school hours. The school has a zero tolerance policy and so I'm going to have to suspend you for the next week." Ron nodded as if he'd expected nothing less. " However," Mr. Barkin continued, " Before I came in, I talked to some of the other gentlemen who witnessed the events in the locker room. Mr. Flagg and several other students have volunteered to go on the record in your defense to the fact that the fight was started by Mr. Mankey, who of course will also be suspended as a result. I may be able to use that to convince his parents that any legal action against you would be ill advised."

"Sir?" Ron questioned, surprised at the lengths that Mr. Barkin seemed to be willing to go to keep him out of too much trouble.

" As I've said before Stoppable," he replied, " You and Possible make a pretty good team when it comes to saving the world. It'd be a shame to see you two split up if you ended up in jail for giving Mankey what he had coming. Not like it's likely that his parents could find anyone willing to prosecute a member of team Possible, but you can never be too prepared."

Ron nodded, amazed that he was getting off light, comparatively speaking. " So, I'm free to go?" he asked nervously, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

" Yes," Mr. Barkin replied, " You're free to go. The school day's almost over anyway so your suspension will begin tomorrow. I'd suggest however, that you head out now in case Mr. Mankey or Mr. Jenkins are entertaining any thoughts of getting back at you for the episode in the gym." Ron nodded and slowly rose from the chair. " Oh, and Stoppable?" Mr. Barkin said, halting Ron's departure, " Two things. First of all, don't forget your mole rat. And second of all, you might want to consider something to help with that anger management problem you've seemed to have acquired recently. Personally, I find yoga to be helpful."

Yoga Ron pondered holding his pocket open, an obvious cue for Rufus to climb on in., Somehow I just can't see Mr. Barkin making it into a full lotus position. Ok, now I can and it's really disturbing He shuddered and walked out of Mr. Barkin's office, trying to get the image out of his head, and ran directly into Kim, who was dressed in her mission gear. " So KP," he asked nervously, " Since when does saving me from Mr. Barkin's office qualify for going mission mode?"

" It doesn't" She replied tersely, grabbing his arm, " We got a hit on the site. Wade's arranged for a helicopter to pick us up. You can change on the chopper, while we have a nice little talk about why you were in Mr. Barkin's office in the first place." She dragged him behind her as she stormed out of the administrative offices of the school, wondering just what Ron's side of the story would be. She'd heard rumors shortly after the incident that Ron had just randomly snapped and attacked both Josh and Tom Jenkins in the locker room. She'd hoped that they weren't true, as she couldn't believe her normally soft spoken friend was capable of such a thing, but she'd caught sight of Josh leaving the nurse's office with bandages over his nose. Would it really be so wrong if Ron was responsible for that though? a little voice in her head asked After all, Josh used and humiliated you. Doesn't he deserve something to happen to him for that? She pushed the thought aside violently as she burst through the doors of the school and headed towards the football field where the helicopter sat awaiting their arrival.

Moments later Ron finished adjusting his mission clothes, and fought off a blush. While he'd been able to get Kim to close her eyes, it hadn't seemed the most wise of choices to try and get the female helicopter pilot to do the same Oh man, Sheena is going to kill me for changing in front of another woman if she ever finds out Granted, he didn't have any plans to tell her, but one never knew just what information she could get ahold of if she was truly determined to. " You can open your eyes now KP," he said simply, settling into the seat beside her, " So what was the hit on the site about?" he hoped that if he could get her mind on business he could avoid talking about the events of the school day.

" Dr. Bortel," Kim nearly growled, her eyes narrowing into slits, " Apparently he's had his latest invention stolen. Guess who gets the wonderful job of bringing it back to him?"

"Dr. Bortel?" Ron scratched his head thoughtfully, " You mean the moodulator guy?"

" Yes," She replied with barely contained frustration, " The moodulator guy."

Ron barely managed to hide a smile behind a gloved hand, " Oh come on KP, you can't possibly still be mad about that. I mean it's not like he deliberately tagged you and Sheen…uh…Shego, just to toy with your emotions. What got stolen this time? Smooth Stoppable, real smooth he thought gazing out the window Almost give away the fact that you know Shego's secret identity. That would be an extra fun discussion. Whatever was left over from Kim killing me for dating her enemy, Shego would blast into a million pieces

Kim frowned, " Why wouldn't I still be mad about that Ron? You've never had your emotions manipulated by a microchip. You've never come on to your best friend because your emotions had been tossed into overdrive. That wasn't the way I'd ever imagined kissing you for the first time, ok? So yes, I'm still a little tweaked at Dr. Bortel. And he didn't say precisely what had been stolen, but rather he'd tell us when we arrived. You remember how paranoid he was about people spying on him." She felt a blush color her cheeks and she quickly turned her head away, disguising it as a simple hair flip. Please, oh please don't let him pick up on that little slip she prayed to whomever would listen. The last thing she needed was Ron being perceptive for once in his life and picking up on the idea that she was attracted to him in a more than friends soft of way. And yet, it was exactly what she wanted on some level. She sucked at telling guys how she felt as her experience in trying to get up the nerve to ask Josh for a date, before she realized what an asshole he was, had taught her.

Ron glanced down at his pocket, sharing a puzzled look with Rufus, who gave him a helpless shrug. Wait a second! Kim's had thoughts about our first kiss even before the whole moodulator thing? Well, that changes….absolutely nothing He smiled and felt his muscles relax as he realized that while on some level he'd always love KP, it was more of a sister and best friend love now and what he felt for Sheena was a totally different love. You know, she could be the one part of his brain suggested innocently. Ron put the thought on a back burner, it wasn't that he didn't want to settle down some day, but at eighteen years old he wasn't quite ready for that leap. " KP, KP, KP," he chided gently, " You've got to learn to let go of the past. I mean, think of all the times I've seriously screwed up without even meaning to. If you held all those against me, do you think I'd still be on the team?"

Kim smiled and draped an arm around Ron's shoulders, giving them a gentle squeeze and leaving her arm there. " When'd you get so wise?" She asked, doing little to mask her pleasure that Ron didn't remove her arm or tease her about her slip. Ron just smiled secretively and gave her an "I don't know" shrug. It looks like we're genuinely starting to get back on track friendship wise she thought And who knows, since Josh is so definitely out of the picture, maybe we can take it to the next level. And speaking of Josh… Kim turned in her seat to face Ron as fully as possible " Well, now that we've gotten the mission discussion out of the way and worked on some of my past issues, how about we work on some of your current ones? Issues involving ….oh I don't know Josh Mankey and Tom Jenkins for example."

Ron groaned, " I can explain…" he began only to be cut off by an irate Kim.

" Explain what Ron? I thought you were on board on the whole don't react thing and I find out that you beat the crap out of Josh and Tom in the boy's locker room and got suspended for it? Tell me, just how does that qualify as not reacting?" She demanded, her gaze boring into him and making him squirm.

Of course she didn't mention the fact that her reaction to the picture at the start of the school day wasn't exactly a non-reaction either, and deciding that for once discretion truly was the better part of valor, Ron didn't point that out. " Kim," he said turning to stare into her angry green eyes, " I'll admit that it wasn't the wisest choice of action. But Josh was making you out to be the town slut and I just couldn't take it ok? You're my best friend and I couldn't just let him stand there and make it sound like you're so easy that you'd jump anything that walked. And if you're expecting an apology, you're going to have to keep on waiting because it's not coming. I'd do it again in a heartbeat."

Kim paused, considering his words You know, it's kind of old school romantic, him sticking up for you like that part of her mind whispered The kind of thing you know dad would approve of in a potential boyfriend. Once again she pushed the thought away, this was no time to start having feelings for her best friend. "Look, Ron," she said, letting some of her anger seep out of her voice and body, though it still irked her that he thought she couldn't deal with things herself, " I can understand how you felt, but I really don't need you beating people up for me. Ok?"

He nodded, " Ok, but in my defense, technically I only beat up Monkey boy….Brick took care of Tom before I even had a chance to."

Kim gaped; it was often football players in general who liked to torment Ron, when they deigned to even acknowledge his existence, so it was something of a shock to hear that one of the most respected players had backed Ron up. She was about to ask about it when the pilot's words interrupted." Mr. Stoppable, Ms. Possible, we've arrived at Dr. Bortel's lab and will be setting down on the rooftop momentarily."

Kim sighed, knowing that it wasn't the time to get further into personal drama, and made a mental note to ask Ron later about just what had caused Brick to back him up in the locker room. Looking through the window, she could see Dr. Bortel's short and stocky figure waiting by the helipad, wringing his hands nervously. The chopper had set down and been off for less than a minute before Kim sprang from the cockpit, dragging Ron with her. Lets just get this over with as quickly as possible She thought. As they approached Dr. Bortel, the pilot once again called out to them.

" Mr. Stoppable, I don't have anything else scheduled for today, so I'm free to wait here and give you a ride back to Middleton if you'd like," she offered, " Oh, and of course, Ms. Possible as well." Ron nodded his thanks and continued on towards the scientist. Kim, on the other hand, let her gaze linger on the other woman for a moment. She couldn't be absolutely positive, due to the dark lenses of the pilot's helmet, but she had the strangest feeling that she was checking Ron behind them.

" Nah," She whispered, turning back to where Ron now stood with the Doctor, " I'm just imagining things." It wasn't that she didn't think that Ron was attractive, it was just that it was an odd sort of attractiveness that most women over looked, preferring men with money or movie star good looks. " Dr. Bortel," she said forcing a smile and extending her hand, " Good to see you again, though I wish the circumstances were different."

Bortel smiled in return and briefly grasped the young woman's hand, glad to see that it seemed she had moved on from the modulator unpleasantness. " As do I Ms. Possible. But we have no time for idle chit chat, the longer we wait, the more time the thief has to put distance between himself and us. Please, come this way." Ron and Kim exchanged a puzzled look and followed him to what turned out to be an elevator. Ensconced inside, Bortel pressed a key for the basement and the elevator began its slow descent.

" So," Ron said, breaking the uncomfortable silence, " What is it that was stolen precisely? You didn't build a bigger, better moodulator did you?" He ignored the glare that Kim shot him.

" You're not wearing wiretaps or other recording devices anywhere on your persons?" Dr. Bortel asked, looking them over carefully. They both shook their heads that they weren't in exasperation, and Rufus poked his head out of Ron's pocket, pointing at his head and twirling his finger to indicate that he thought the good doctor was more than a little nuts. " Very well then," Dr. Bortel said, seeming to relax a bit, " You're familiar with the studies that suggest that plant life can react to human emotional states?" They both nodded, " Well that was the basis for my current research…."

"Wait a minute here," Kim interjected, staring down harshly at the small man, " You'd better not be telling me that you created biological moodulators and they've gone missing."

" Heavens no," Dr. Bortel exclaimed as the elevator reached its destination and the doors opened. " There'd be no money at all to be made there, it'd be too difficult to control something that could grow and spread on its own. Nobody would want that technology to get out of hand." He continued, leading them out of the elevator and into what appeared to be a highly advanced, underground greenhouse. A vibrant variety of plant life sat under bright lights with a computer monitor nearby monitoring the progress of each individual experiment.

" Of course not," Kim agreed gamely, wishing he'd just get to the point so they could get out of there. " What is it you were working on that was stolen then?"

They stopped at the end of the room, just short of a hole in the ground, surrounded by fallen leaves and what appeared to be red petals. " I was working on mood roses," Bortel said, sadly, looking at the hole, " They were my most successful plant experiment to date, and now they're gone. The whole bush, stolen."

" Hold the phone," Ron said, turning to the older man, " I thought you said you weren't interested in manipulating people's emotions. Then what did mood roses do if not that?"

" They simply responded to people's moods. Like biological mood rings that actually work. Strong, positive emotions could keep the flowers in bloom almost indefinitely, even in the absence of fresh water, whereas strong negative emotions would cause them to wilt at an accelerated rate. I got the idea after my last failed relationship and figured that if someone as bright as I am could have used some indication that things were going sour, then there must be others out there who could also use an occasional hint. More importantly, they'd be willing to pay handsomely for the help. I was going to conquer the floral market, and now my most promising work, gone. You must help me!"

Kim and Ron rolled their eyes theatrically behind Bortel's back and even Rufus managed a quiet "oh brother". Still, a mission was a mission, even one as pointless as this. " Do you have any idea who would have wanted to steal your research Doctor?" Kim asked politely.

" Fortunately, yes," Dr. Bortel replied, " My security cameras captured the whole thing." He led them over to a bank of computers and typed in a command. A second later, one of the monitors sprang to life, showing a darkly tanned individual wearing a garish yellow shirt and tight black pants sneaking through the green house and digging up a moderately sized rose bush before placing it into a sack on his back and sneaking back out."

"Señor Senior Junior," Ron and Kim said simultaneously. " Jinx, you owe me a soda," Kim teased with a smile And maybe if I get two straws for it you'll start to pick up on the signals I've been dropping . Pulling her Kimmunicator from a pocket, Kim flipped it on, " Wade, I need you to locate the Seniors for me as soon as possible."

The young super genius gave her a jaunty salute before furiously typing on his computer. " Ok, Señor Senior Senior is currently at the billionaire's club. Apparently he's actually decided to buy the club and has been in the process of remodeling it into another home for the past few weeks. Junior's…" a few more key strokes. A pause " Hmmm…he's not on their island at the moment, and aside from your current mission there's been no reports of him being spotted anywhere. I'll keep looking and let you know as soon as I have anything."

"Thanks Wade, you rock." Kim said before turning off the little device and returning it to her pocket. " Well Dr. Bortel, it doesn't look like we can do much from here, but as soon as we have anything for you, we'll let you know." She said cheerfully. No matter how hard she tried to put the moodulator incident behind her there was just something about someone who'd even want to control the emotions of others that just made her skin crawl. " We can find our own way out. Come on Ron" She grabbed his arm and dragged him almost literally, back towards the elevator and to Kim's mind, freedom.

Moments later they were once again airborne in the helicopter and winging their way back to Middleton. Kim turned to Ron, thinking that some non-argumentative or mission related small talk could make the short flight more pleasant, only to find he'd fallen asleep, his head resting against the pilot's chair. " Sorry about that," she said, feeling oddly possessive as she grasped Ron's shoulder and pulled him against her, " He's had a rough day."

"It's quite alright Ms. Possible," the young woman replied with a smile, " I certainly didn't mind."

Kim's eyes narrowed and she fought the growl she felt building in her throat. Whoa, calm down Kim. She's doing you a favor in giving you a lift back home, no need to get all jealous. It's not like Ron will ever see her again or anything. It was a comforting thought, almost as comforting as the feeling of Ron's body pressed against hers. Maybe I could take a little nap myself she thought, closing her eyes and leaning her head against Ron's, a smile on her face.

The feeling of the helicopter settling down onto the ground again jolted Kim awake and she gave Ron a sharp shake to wake him up as well. " We're home Ron," She said, " Well, more or less anyway. We're in the Bueno Nacho parking lot." The words worked like magic, causing Ron to bolt upright and look around to make sure she wasn't just using it to wake him up.

"I figured that you two might be hungry," she said by way of explanation, " And it's no real secret that Ron Stoppable loves Bueno Nacho."

" You are a saint," Ron said, smiling at the pilot, " Come on Kim, get that door open. Bueno Nacho awaits!"

The door had barely been opened for a moment when Ron scrambled over Kim's lap and through the door, heading towards his home away from home. Kim spared a second to cast a glare at the pilot before following after Ron, who had almost reached the restaurant's doors. Over the sound of the helicopter's rotors spinning to life, Kim's ears picked up on the familiar chime of the Kimmiunicator and smiled wistfully Ron's going to be pissed that his snackage is interrupted by having to go back on the job. She thought, retrieving the device from her pants pocket and flicking it on " Go Wade" she said simply.

" Hey Kim, you just got another hit on the site," the super genius responded, tapping away at the keyboard in front of him, " But it's really weird."

Kim frowned, given the kinds of freaks she had to deal with on a regular basis, she was sure that really weird couldn't be a good thing. " Something to do with Junior and Dr. Bortel's missing rosebush?" she asked hopefully.

" Actually no." He said, " It's not even a mission per se, more of a gift for Ron."

" A gift," She said cautiously, " Has he been calling in favors without needing to?" She asked, cutting her eyes at the doors to Bueno Nacho, " Cause if he is I'm going to have to have a little talk with him." The doors opened and Ron poked his head out, looking around until he finally spotted her. Speak of the devil she thought, motioning him over with her free hand and holding the Kimmunicator up for him to see.

" I knew I should have ordered without you," Ron joked, coming to stand beside her, " What's up Wade, Junior finally show himself somewhere?"

" No Ron," Kim said, as sternly as possible, " Apparently someone's decided to use the site to send you a gift. Is there anything you'd like to tell us before it arrives?" She arched an eyebrow.

" Ummmm….no?" Ron responded curiously, " Why would I? I know not to call in favors for personal reasons. You never know when we might need a lift somewhere." He pulled the Kimmunicator close enough that he could see the screen " Any idea what it is or who sent it Wade?"

" That's the weird thing," Wade answered, typing furiously, " I don't have a clue who it's from. I've tried tracing the message but every trick I try ends up hitting a dead end. Whoever it was doesn't want to be discovered and possesses hacking skills even better than my own." He frowned, obviously uncomfortable with the idea. " Whatever it is, should be arriving at your location in a matter of minutes. Apparently it's been air dropped from a delivery plane." Both Kim and Ron looked skyward at this latest bit of news and could make out the form of a large crate floating down on a parachute towards them.

" We see it Wade," Kim said, curiosity and caution at war with each other in her voice, " Gotta go, we'll let you know if it's a trap of any sort." She ended the transmission before the younger man could argue and headed over to where the crate was about to set down, Ron and Rufus in tow. Moments after the crate landed the sides fell away to reveal a green and black motorcycle, with matching helmet. Attached to the handlebars was a note which read " Mr. Stoppable, we've heard about the loss of your scooter. Hope this serves as an adequate replacement." There was no signature listed with it. " You're sure you haven't called in any favors Ron?" Kim asked skeptically, watching with a raised eyebrow, as Ron circled the bike with a dropped jaw.

" I wouldn't even know who to call for something like this," he replied, lifting the helmet, he found the keys to the motorcycle, with a note attached to them. " Hope you like the bike- Sheena". Making sure that Kim couldn't see, he quickly tore the note from the keys and stuffed it into the pocket with Rufus, who squeaked indignantly in response. Well, if the colors didn't give it away, that certainly cleared up who sent it. Doesn't exactly explain why he mused. Maybe I should pay her a visit and find out, and thank her of course. A slow smile crossed his face as he thought of a few ways he could thank her, all of them pleasant. He popped the helmet onto his head and slipped the key into the ignition, gunning the engine experimentally. " How about a rain check on Bueno Nacho KP?" He asked, his voice barely audible over the engine, " I want to see just what this baby can do." Receiving a stunned nod in response, he raised the bike's kickstand and raced off down the street, making a sharp turn just before the light went red, that would lead him towards Lowerton.

Kim watched her friend until he made the turn then whipped out the Kimmunicator. Ron giving up Bueno Nacho? Willingly? Something weird is definitely going on here. " Wade," she said as the super genius' face appeared on the viewscreen, " I need you to track Ron's signal. When he stops moving, get a lock on his location and let me know."

" Is something wrong, Kim?" Wade asked, noting the urgency in her voice.

" I don't know Wade," she replied shakily, taking a seat on the curb and gazing down the road her best friend had taken, " I just don't know."


	8. Lure of the Dark Side

Bad as she wants me to be

Chapter Eight: Lure of the dark side

Author: RoguesKnight

Rating: M/MA….violence, language, etc.

Disclaimer: Still not mine. Wish they were, but they're not. Such is life.

Author's note: Thanks to my wonderful reviewers who've stuck with me and waited patiently for this update. HorusRei, GargoyleSama, The Incredible Werekitty, Classic Cowboy, Campy, Akemi, BuckNC, Whatever Star, Scotty Boi, SkyMaiden, Vegeta666, rabid squirrel, The shadowless one, eckles, Shawn Provoncha, Raven Sugara the Tenken, BrianDarksoul, Joe Dalton, wellisn't thatsimple, Aero Tendo, Duke, Kitsune6, momike, the1SkyWalker, Jim, Talya11, oblivionknight7, richie, James Trammell III, Razzle Jazzle, J or the blind, Sand Lord, Akemi, Steve1Uk, bloodrain, dark dragon mage, merridian, Kitsune-Itai, and anyone I may have missed. Sorry it took soo long to update, but as of today, it's only 8 days til the wedding so I've been pretty busy. I'll do my best to update as soon as possible. Thank you all for your support. And as always, a very special thanks to my wonderful fiancée.

We now return to our sort of regularly scheduled program.

An hour and a half after leaving Kim standing in the Bueno Nacho parking lot, Ron arrived at Sheena's home. He killed the motorcycle's engine, and pushed the kickstand down into place before climbing off the bike on only slightly unsteady legs to pull off his helmet. " Ok, so maybe speeding wasn't the best plan in the world. But hey, we did eventually lose those cops, didn't we?" he asked, looking down at Rufus, whose head was peeking cautiously out of his pocket. If he didn't know any better he'd have sworn that the pink hairless rodent was actually more pale than normal. " Uh, Rufus, you ok pal?"

Ignoring Ron's question, Rufus sprang out of his pocket and threw himself onto the ground, looking as though he was doing his best to give the earth a hug. " Land! Land!" he squealed thankfully.

" Oh come on Rufus, chill. I mean it's not like we actually crashed or anything, now did we? Besides a little evasive driving was necessary, I really don't think Sheena would appreciate it if we led cops here or anything." Gazing at the house; he couldn't tell if she was home or not, as all the windows were dark and there was no evidence of her hovercraft parked anywhere. Of course if she's out, there's no telling just how long it'll be before she comes back to this place he thought Course, without school to fill up the long ass boring days, I've got plenty of time to wait. He sighed setting the helmet on the motorcycle's seat and bending down to pick up Rufus before heading towards the darkened dwelling wondering just how he was going to get inside if Sheena wasn't home. " Well only one way to find out" he muttered to himself, heading up the steps and onto the front porch.

Approaching the front door he wasn't at all surprised to find that there was no knocker or doorbell. Probably throws off the door-to-door sales people he mused, raising his hand and rapping sharply on the door. A few minutes passed with no signs of life from within before he tried again. Again there was no response. " Alright, how am I supposed to thank her for the kick ass set of wheels if she's not here? I mean, she didn't include a time for me to rendezvous with her or anything in the note, but it's not like she'd have had it delivered to me when I couldn't thank he, would she?"

Rufus scampered up Ron's arm to his shoulder and examined the closed door critically, rubbing his chin thoughtfully before giving a helpless shrug " Hmmmm…dunno" he squeaked sheepishly.

" Maybe we're missing something," Ron muttered, not willing to give up, " There's no way she'd be the type to leave a spare key laying around." Still, it couldn't hurt to look. Stepping away from the door, he looked down at the welcome mat. The surprisingly new looking welcome mat he thought. Knowing full well that he couldn't be lucky enough to find a spare key, Ron lifted the mat anyway and took a look. " And of course there's no key there," he said, trying to hide his disappointment. " Even if she didn't have a key herself, I'm sure that wouldn't really stop her. I mean she breaks into heavily guarded buildings for a living, her own home would be a piece of cake for her."

"Mmmm…cake," Rufus nodded, rubbing his stomach vigorously to remind Ron that they'd skipped out on Bueno Nacho to come here.

Ron sighed, " I know pal. I'm hungry too…but you know how it is when you're in love with someone. Logic doesn't always work." Ignoring the mole rat's look that implied that logic and Ron seldom, if ever, kept company, Ron leaned over the porch's railing to eye the darkened windows of the living room. " She probably has security six ways from Sunday here…how fried do you think I'd get if I tried…I don't know…breaking a window or something. Presuming that they're even made of simple glass and not bulletproof glass or something."

" Big zap," Rufus cried, looking at his long time friend in shock, " Bad idea…mmhmmmm" To emphasize his point, he shook as if being zapped by electricity and much to his chagrin, fell off of Ron's shoulder. He landed on a board in the porch which immediately see-sawed into the air, dumping him into the darkness under the porch. As he slid off the end of the board it fell back into place leaving him completely in the dark. He let his eyes adjust for a moment before looking around to make sure there wasn't anything too creepy under there with him, like a spider or something, and that's when he spotted what appeared to be a piece of metal. " No way," he whispered, scampering over to investigate. On closer inspection the bit of metal turned out to be exactly what he'd thought, a key. Clutching it in his hands Rufus hoisted the key above his head and tapped it against the board to signal his location to Ron. When the board was lifted away, he held the key up triumphantly. " Boo-yah!" he cried as Ron lifted him free.

" Rufus, you rock!" Ron responded, setting the mole rat on his shoulder and taking the proffered key. Of course if couldn't just be under the welcome mat he groused, sliding the key into the lock Always has to do things the hard way. He opened the door and stepped into the darkness beyond, closing it gently behind him. "Now, if we could just find a light switch we'd be in business" he muttered, sliding his hands along the nearby wall. There was a click and the living room was flooded with light. Ron grinned, and walked in, taking care to avoid Sheena's computer station in case Dr. Drakken felt the need to call again. He plopped down on the green leather sofa with a content sigh as the material sagged to support him. " Guess we just have to wait and see if she comes back any time soon, huh Rufus?". Rufus stared at him wide eyed before chittering at him in a mix of exasperation and shock. Ron couldn't help but smile " Oh come on," he reasoned, " Mom and Dad aren't due back from their cruise for a few days yet, and I'm suspended from school for a week. What could possibly be wrong with spending some time here? I mean it's not like we've got anything better to do, right?"

Rufus seemed to consider it before scampering down Ron's shirt to his lap and fishing the Kimmunicator out of his pocket and holding it up. " Missions," he said definitively, nodding.

Ron took the device from Rufus and studied it carefully Probably shouldn't disconnect the power this time he decided God knows when Junior's going to pop up with some lame ass plan for those roses and if KP can't get a hold of me for the mission she'll drop everything and come get me first. Which could be awk-weird to say the least. " Yea, you know Rufus, I think this thing with Junior may be my last mission for a little bit." Noting the shock on his friend's face he continued, " I know, I know, but I'm a senior in high school now. I should really start thinking about the future. I mean, as great as missions can be, and as much good as we do, it's not exactly like we can make a career out of them. And most employers wouldn't really like me jetting off around the world at a moment's notice."

Rufus's shoulders slumped as he took a seat on the couch beside his friend, he hadn't really thought about it like that before. Being a naked mole rat, he didn't really have to worry about things like how to support himself or what the future might hold long term. A sudden idea struck him and he brightened considerably " Global justice?" he offered.

Ron smiled gently " I appreciate the suggestion pal. And you're right, it'd be being paid to do what KP and I do now really. But I don't think so. I mean mission clothes are one thing, but GJ uniforms on a regular basis? No thanks." He shuddered at the thought " Besides, I'm not exactly one for taking orders. I was thinking more along the lines of applying to the Middleton Culinary Institute, I may even have a shot at getting in."

At the mention of the culinary institute, Rufus's stomach rumbled loudly. " Mmm food," he said nodding. He had to admit Ron did have a special touch when it came to cooking.

" Kitchen's that way pal," Ron grinned, jerking a thumb towards the closed door. " And unless she loaded it all into her ship to pay you off the other day, I think there's still some cheese in her fridge." He had to suppress a laugh as Rufus darted from his lap and flew to, and through, the kitchen door. " It's a shame I don't have a clue as to whether or not Sheena will even be back tonight. I could get a dinner ready for her if I did" he mused aloud as he pushed himself up from the couch reluctantly, and followed Rufus into the kitchen

Entering the spotless room, he found Rufus sitting on the metal island, contentedly munching on a block of cheese. Ron grinned, shaking his head in amusement. " I wasn't kidding earlier about you telling me how you manage to open fridges at your height Rufus." He said, walking to the fridge and taking a peek inside, " And not just for my benefit. I mean, suppose this relationship actually works out…" he was interrupted by a theatrical gasp and feigned fainting from the mole rat, " Yea, I know. It'd be a shock to me too, but it could happen.," he continued with mock irritation. " How do you think Sheena would react if someone were to demolish her cheese supply? Now, if I were able to tell her how to Rufus proof the fridge, there's less of a chance of fried mole rat." He smiled easily, not mentioning the fact that he would be just as likely a culprit as far as cheese demolition was concerned. Hmmm….she must have gone shopping recently he thought, peering into the fridge; it was even more well stocked than the last time he'd seen it. Ahhhh…here we go Reaching in, he removed a good sized chicken and shut the door. " Rufus, would you mind setting the oven to three fifty for me?" he asked, carrying the bird over to the sink and setting it down.

" Sure!" Rufus chirped in response, scampering over to the impressively high tech looking oven and pressing the appropriate buttons to set the temperature. That done, he hopped down and began scrounging through the lower cabinets in search of an appropriate pan to bake the chicken in. Finding one he dragged it out and clambered up onto the counter top by Ron with a triumphant " Taa Daa"

" You rock Rufus," Ron grinned, placing the unwrapped chicken into the pan and offering his diminutive friend a high five, " If it wasn't for those damn health code people, we could probably get our own cooking show on cable. I mean, come on, they've got "Cooking with Cactus" for crying out loud. How many ways can you prepare cactus?". Rufus beamed at the compliment, nodding in agreement as Ron moved around the kitchen, selecting spices for the chicken. Or trying to anyway. " My god," he breathed, " Season all and garlic salt? That's all she's got? Oh, I'm so buying her a fully stocked spice rack, this….this is completely unacceptable." Shaking his head in resignation, he carried the spices back to the chicken, coating its skin with an equal portion of each and setting it into the oven. " Well, that's killed a little time," he said casually, cleaning up what little mess he'd made, " Any ideas on how to kill more til dinner's ready?" He asked Rufus, who had returned to the island and polished off his cheese.

Rufus seemed to think about it carefully. From what Ron had told him about his brief time here before, there weren't a lot of options as far as time killing went. " Dunno." He admitted with a hopeless shrug.

" I could think of a few things," came a voice from the doorway, causing both Ron and Rufus to jump in surprise and turn towards the door to find Sheena standing there, a huge smile on her face and her eyes sparkling with dark amusement. " Of course, what I'm thinking is more of a two person activity, so Rufus would be on his own." She walked into the kitchen and leaned against the island, " No offense," she added.

Ron's heart thundered in his ears as he took in the sight of his new girlfriend. She was once again dressed in her usual green and black jumpsuit, but that wasn't the alarming thing; in fact he'd always liked the way it fit her like a second skin, no what was troubling was the condition of the suit. There were several large tears in the sleeves and legs, some of which were blackened and curled at the edges as if she'd been just a little too close to flames. Through some of the larger tears, he could see the beginnings of bruises on her pale green skin. " Are you ok? What happened?" he asked, his feet carrying him around the island to her side. Standing beside her, he caught the faintest hint of smoke, sending his concern even higher.

" I'm fine." Sheena answered, smiling as if to prove it, " And you know I can't tell you what happened. No shop talk, remember?" She wrapped her arms around his neck and drew him into a deep kiss. Note to self, start keeping spare jumpsuits in vehicles and at Dr. D's so he won't think there's anything wrong. Granted, jumpsuits didn't seem to stay on her for very long these days when Ron was around and he'd notice the bruising, but aside from that the plan was fool proof. " So," she started innocently, breaking the kiss, " Not that I mind, but what are you doing here?"

Ron grinned, " Nice try, but innocent just doesn't work on you. You and I both know why I'm here," he inclined his head towards the front of the house. " I came to thank you for the bike. Judging by the color scheme, I had a feeling you were behind it."

Dropping the act, she shrugged, " Well, you didn't expect me to constantly do all the traveling to see you did you? Besides, the more time I spend in Middleton, the greater the chances that Possible or your inept police force might catch sight of me. This way you can come out and visit without that being a problem."

Ron smiled and carefully placed a hand on her back, " You know that I can't pay you back for it yet, right? The whole hero thing doesn't exactly pay." Sheena nodded silently. " So what, does this mean that I'm a kept man? Are you my sugar momma?" he winked teasingly, earning a small smile in response.

" No, doofus," she teased gently, " For one thing, it's a gift, so you don't have to worry about paying me back for the bike." She paused, a wicked smile coming over her features, " Well, maybe not with money…." Ron paled, and Sheena had to fight not to laugh, " And as for the hero thing not paying…have you ever seriously given evil a thought as a career? And I don't mean in the over-the-top kind of way that Drakken does it. That's not that profitable anyway…but more of a hands on kind of evil. I could teach you a thing or two, and with what you've learned from your time with Kimmie, you'll probably catch on a hell of a lot faster than Junior did. Plus, you can fight." An odd look crossed Ron's face, and Sheena made a note of it before continuing, " I know you can, even though you do your best to look inept whenever you and Kimmie bust one of Drakken's idiot schemes. You're good enough to go toe to toe with Monkeyfist and win time after time. Why not consider a more lucrative career than hero?" She knew that she was trying too hard to sell it, but she didn't care. Biting her lower lip anxiously, she waited for a response. Yea, cause after years of crime fighting he's just going to jump into your camp she sneered mentally Get a grip on yourself and stop acting like some love sick teenager. Still, stranger things had happened, and she held out the tiniest bit of hope that he'd at least seriously consider her offer. Much to her surprise, Ron simply turned and left the kitchen without a word, leaving a very confused Sheena in his wake. " Ok. I thought I was supposed to be the moody one in this relationship. What's up with Ron?" she asked Rufus, not bothering to hide the concern in her voice.

Rufus shrugged helplessly. He had an idea of what the problem was, but it really wasn't his place to say anything. " Dunno" he said, hoping she'd buy it. Judging by her face, Rufus decided that she'd indeed bought it.

" Well, lets go find out then," she said, holding out a hand and waiting patiently for the mole rat to scramble up her arm and barely managing to hide her surprise when he did so without any bribery or threats. She didn't want to think about what it meant that Rufus had accepted her so quickly just because of her relationship with Ron. He's just a loyal pet she told herself Smarter and more useful than most pets, but still, just a pet. The sound of concerned chittering from Rufus's perch on her shoulder as they headed out of the kitchen wasn't helping to convince her of that however. They found Ron seated on the couch, his eyes closed and head leaning back. " Ok," Sheena said sitting down beside him cautiously, " I'm much better at fighting than the whole concerned girlfriend thing, so I'm just going to be blunt about this. What's bothering you?"

Ron carefully opened an eye and looked her over. Despite her denial, her body posture suggested that she wasn't as bad at showing concern as she claimed. He sighed, " Well, I guess you wouldn't have heard. High school issues probably aren't that big in circles you travel in."

" Heard what Ron?" She asked, concern warring with frustration. It took nearly all the strength she had, but she managed to restrain the urge to grab him and shake him violently until he told her what the hell the problem was.

" I got into a fight at school," he said simply, closing his eye again, " With Josh Mankey. You remember, the guy I caught Kim doing the wild thing with?" Opening his eyes, he looked caught her nod, and let out a deep breath " Well apparently, and you aren't to use this to your advantage, it was just a set up to make Kim look like the class slut. I kicked the crap out of Mankey in the locker room when I heard him boasting to the other guys there, and got suspended as a result. And that's not the worst part. I can handle suspension, and not just cause my parents aren't around to give me hell for it right now either. The worst part is that I didn't feel bad for what I did to Josh. In fact I liked it. All of my life I've had to take a back seat to the pretty boys, or the jocks or some other group that the school pecking order decided was more important than me, but when I beat up Josh, I had the power and I liked it." He was nearly hysterical, tears welling in his eyes.

Sheena nodded slowly, understanding what he wasn't saying perfectly " And you think just because you beat up someone and liked it, that means you've taken your first step towards the dark side?" she asked carefully. He nodded silently and she cupped his chin in her hand, turning his head so she could meet his eyes as she spoke, " Ron, it's not your actions that make you good or evil." She caught the glimmer of an argument in his eyes and placed a finger against his lips. " No, just listen for now. Your actions aren't what make you good or evil. It's your intention behind them. Now personally, I don't mind stealing something either for my own use, or cause Dr. D paid me to do it. I'm comfortable with evil. You beat the shit out of some snot to defend your friend's honor. Your heart was in the right place, even if you think your actions were over the line. Ok, so you enjoyed it a little…you're only human after all, revenge is a natural desire." She gave him a supportive smile, tucking what he'd told her about Kimmie away for future reference. So little Ms. Perfect isn't as pure and wholesome as she likes people to believe…I can't wait to rub that in her face She thought evilly Just not where Ron could overhear…I don't want to split them just yet…and if she thought he was supplying me with intimate details of her life, that'd certainly do it.

Ron sighed, reaching up and gently removing her finger from his lips " Thanks Sheena," he said softly, " Sorry I over reacted to the evil sales pitch. I've just had so much going on in these past few days that I haven't had time to process anything in depth. And thank you also for not giving me the " you should know better" treatment like Kim did. It's nice to be treated like an equal instead of a child." He smiled shakily, slipping an arm around her shoulders. " So, we can't do shop talk, and judging from the condition of your jumpsuit and the bruises I can see, an evening of wild sex is out." It was her turn to look argumentative and Ron wisely, but barely, kept an amused smile off of his lips. " Any suggestions then as to what we might be able to fill the time with until the chicken's ready? By my estimate it's still got close to an hour."

Sheena smiled, making a mental note to make Ron pay for the sex comment " Actually, I think so. If you don't mind moving the couch in front of the TV by yourself. I would help, but you know, it could upset these injuries of mine and I'm sure you wouldn't do that." She gave him her own version of the puppy dog pout and wrapped an arm across her torso, giving off an air of being more injured than she was for good measure. That'll teach him she thought smugly.

Ron sighed, dropping his head in defeat. Does every girl in the world know how to do the puppy dog pout? he wondered. " Why would I mind?" he asked as brightly as possible, motioning for Sheena and Rufus to get off the couch and grabbing the arm. Thank god for carpet, I have a feeling she'd kill me if I scuffed her floors. He thought. " So what's this plan of yours?" he asked with a smile.

Forty-five minutes later, Ron found himself curled up on the couch with Sheena in his arms, as the opening credits to " Resident Evil: Apocalypse" played across the TV screen Rufus lay curled up on the couch's arm, snoring lightly. He'd fallen asleep waiting for Sheena to settle on a movie.. At least she didn't pick some chick flick he thought happily, giving her a squeeze and being rewarded by her snuggling closer I've never known anyone who takes as long to pick out a DVD to watch. Of course, I've never known anyone with such an extensive collection either. The few he'd seen on his last visit had only been the tip of the iceberg as he'd discovered when she'd brought out a huge box filled nearly to the top with them. He'd wisely kept his mouth shut instead of following his first impulse to ask how many of them had been bought legally. An explosion on screen made her jump slightly and he grinned. " Hey, we can turn it off if you're scared. You don't have to prove you're brave all of the time you know." He kidded.

Not surprisingly, he was rewarded with a sharp elbow to the stomach. " I have a thing about zombies ok?" She muttered, her eyes riveted to the screen as another zombie went down in a hail of bullets. She shivered and involuntarily snuggled closer into Ron's protective embrace " It's why every one of Dr. D's zombie movies has met with an untimely end. And even if he replaces them, they're miraculously one of the first things to get destroyed when he pisses me off." Pulling her eyes away from the carnage on the screen, she offered him a mock-innocent smile, " after all, wouldn't want him watching them after you and Kimmie foil one of his idiot schemes and getting inspired to actually try and raise the dead or anything."

Ron chuckled, running his hands along her arms idly, " Drakken likes zombie movies? Hmmm…I'd have pegged him for the Frankenstein type myself. What with being a mad scientist and all". He got another elbow to the stomach for the comment. " What!" he asked indignantly, grabbing her wrists just in case she felt like doing it again.

" Don't even joke about that kind of thing," she warned, twisting up to glare at him, " You'll jinx it and the next thing you know he'll want me to go dig up fresh corpses or something, and you know who I'll take that out on, don't you?"

Ron gulped. " Right, no more talk of mad scientists or their monsters." He agreed hastily nodding and smiling uneasily. Sheena gave him a sweet smile and laid her head back against his chest, quite pleased with herself at having gained his compliance without having to resort to threats or violence, blissfully unaware of the plans forming in Ron's head. Hmmmm…so, she's scared of zombies. This could be fun. Feeling an evil grin spreading across his face, he stole a glance down at Sheena, who was thankfully still focused on the film and not on him. Of course he mused there's also a pretty good chance that she'll kill me for scaring her. She jumped in his arms again, clutching at them almost hard enough to leave bruises, and he almost felt bad for even considering scaring her. Almost. " I'm going to check on the chicken and make sure that it's not burning or anything," he offered casually, gently pushing her forward and climbing out from behind her. " You don't need to stop the movie or anything. I'll be right back."

"Hurry back," Sheena said, attempting to make it sound as suggestive as possible as she stretched out on the couch. Unfortunately, her grabbing one of the end cushions and crushing it against her chest like a child's favorite stuffed animal worked against her.

Chuckling to himself, Ron entered the kitchen " She is so going to kick my ass" he grinned. The timer on the stove read that there were only seven minutes left until the chicken would be ready. I'll check it anyway he thought ovens tend to vary in actual cooking time and I wouldn't want to over cook it and give her something else to be pissed about. He walked over and opened the door, his stomach giving a not so quiet sound of approval as the aroma of chicken and garlic wafted out. After a quick moment of searching for pot holders, he pulled the bird out into the light, noting with satisfaction that it was a nicely golden brown and the juices were running clear. " Ok," he said to the empty room, " future reference, her oven bakes things a little quickly." Ron picked the pan up carefully and set it on top of the stove. Ok, showtime he thought. Edging carefully over to the light switch, he slapped it down into the off position and let out a brief but blood curdling scream.

At the sound of the scream from the kitchen, Sheena jumped nearly a foot into the air, landing in a cautious crouch on the couch. " Ok, there's no such thing as real zombies," she reminded herself, eyeing the door warily nonetheless, " You're just keyed up from the movie. It's just Ron, probably burned himself on the pan or something." That made a lot more sense. " Are you ok Ron?" she called. When there was no reply, she quietly slipped off the couch, sparing a glance at Rufus, who was miraculously still asleep on the arm Yea, Sheena she thought bitterly Wake the mole rat up to serve as your back up over nothing. You'd never hear the end of it. She shook her head, her long dark hair whipping around wildly Rufus as back up? Oh, I've so been spending too much time with Stoppable Oddly enough, the thought didn't bother her as it once would have and a ghost of a smile graced her lips as she made her way towards the kitchen door. Who'd have thought that I could be happy in an actual relationship? she mused, pushing the door open. The darkness that met her eyes immediately chased light hearted thoughts from her mind as a chill raced down her spine. " There are no zombies" she muttered, igniting her right hand…just in case. " Ron?" she queried again, her emerald eyes searching the room but finding no sign of her boyfriend. Oddly enough, there was no sign of a struggle either. A frown crossed her face " Oh, this had better not be a….joke!" She finished, just barely keeping from screaming as a hand closed around her ankle and a low moan rose up from the darkness. Glancing down, she saw Ron, a roguish grin plastered on his face, crouched by the wall and holding onto her leg. In the faint green light of her plasma, his skin looked slightly ghoulish and she once again fought back the urge to scream. " That wasn't funny Stoppable" she said coldly, before extinguishing her hand, leaving him in the dark both literally and figuratively, and walking back out of the room.

" Sheena, wait!" he cried, scrambling to his feet and following her, " I'm sorry, you're right it was in incredibly bad taste. You're a wonderful goddess of a woman who I do not deserve, seeing as I'm the scum of the earth. And once again I am deeply sorry. I…I just…" he sighed, dropping his head toward the floor; she hadn't even bothered to turn around " I just wanted to let you know dinner was ready." Without another word, he turned and walked back into the kitchen, wondering whether or not she'd actually follow him.

Sheena waited until she heard the kitchen door finally come to a rest before turning around and heading through it herself silently, her face emotionless. " Uh-oh" whispered Rufus, who'd been woken up by Ron's pleading for forgiveness. He wasn't sure just what his friend had done, but from the look on Sheena's face, or rather, the lack of look, he had a feeling that it wasn't good. Hopping down from the couch's arm, he scurried through the kitchen door as it swung in Sheena's wake.

They ate in silence at the island in the center of the kitchen, nothing Rufus could think of could get the two lovers to talk to each other; he'd even resorted to moving the salt and pepper to inconvenient places in the hopes that one would have to ask the other for the seasoning at the very least, still nothing. Finally the mole rat curled up in defeat, wondering just what this meant for Ron's new relationship. The sound of empty dishes being collected barely registered in his mind, but the next sound to reach his years sent his heart hammering in his chest.

" You're forgiven Ron" Sheena whispered to Ron's back as he loaded the dishes into her dish washer. " I just really don't like being scared, ok?" In the silence following the admission that something had actually scared her a pin drop would have sounded like an explosion by comparison.

Ron waited a moment after the words sank in to hide his shock before turning to face her, closing the dishwasher with his foot. " I'll keep that in mind." He said simply with a smile. It was all he needed to say. The tension that had built throughout the silent meal immediately vanished and Ron was forced to brace himself against the dishwasher as he found his arms suddenly filled by Sheena, her lips pressing against his firmly. Wow…we actually survived a fight that didn't involve actual fighting he mused in amazement It may be kind of early…but we've known each other for years…so maybe I can use the "l" word before my heart explodes from trying to keep it in. Slowly breaking the kiss he smiled sheepishly, nervously rubbing the small of her back.

Sheena returned the smile, allowing a low purr of contentment to escape her throat and pressing her back firmly against his hands. " So," she started " We managed to have a fight without actually fighting…I don't know about you, but that's a first in my book"

Ron laughed. " So what'd you think of it then?"

She frowned playfully " I didn't like it. Next time can we just settle things the old fashioned way? You know, with violence?"

He shook his head emphatically, " No. We are not settling all of our arguments with violence. I mean, on the off chance that I was actually right, I still wouldn't win."

Sheena dropped a quick kiss on his lips and grinned, " You say that like it's a bad thing Ron."

"Hey!" he replied, affecting a sense of wounded pride " That's just mean. Now I might just have to keep what I was about to tell you to myself." He stuck his tongue out at her and removed his hands from her back, crossing them over his chest.

Sheena shook her head in exasperation, smiling I had to go and fall for someone with the emotional maturity of a five year old. Setting her hands on her hips, she fixed him with a playful glare. " You don't really want to see just how willing I am to use violence to get what I want, are you Ron?"

He smiled appearing much more confidant than he actually felt, " Spoil sport." He took a deep breath. " Ok…what I have to say is kind of scary so if you decide to run, or kick my ass into the next time zone, I'll understand. Sheena….I know this is pretty sudden….and unconventional, but hey that seems to be the theme of this relationship so why not go with what works, right? I….I think I love you." He tensed and closed his eyes, waiting for the sound of her fleeing the kitchen or more likely, the impact of her fists or feet and his body.

Sheena stood, as stunned by his revelation as by any physical blow she'd ever received. He thinks he loves me? It was weird and at the same time wonderful. She'd never even dared to hope that anyone could see something worth loving in her, and once again Ron had gone far beyond her expectations and done just that. But how do I really feel about him? she wondered. It'd started out as a plan to destroy Team Possible…but as she'd gotten to know the amazing young man before her, she'd come to question the wisdom of that plan. I can't let myself love him she decided No matter how much I may want to. Resolute to try and let him down gently without destroying their fragile relationship, she smiled. " Relax Stoppable, I'm not going to hit you. And considering how that's considerably less scary than zombies in my book, I'm not going to run away screaming either. Ron…" now it was her turn to take a deep breath." Ron….I…I think I love you too." Sheena gave herself a mental slap. Yea, definitely have been spending too much time with Stoppable. I'm picking up his habit of speaking without thinking…or appearing to anyway. But the words were out and she couldn't take them back without hurting Ron in the process.

Ron couldn't believe his ears, " Wow…" he said, voice barely above a whisper, " So what do we do now?" he added nervously, tugging at his collar. He hadn't thought that she would ever make such an intimate declaration so easily, if at all, and the depth of feeling in her eyes assured him that it wasn't just a reflexive statement on her part.

"Well," she said with a smile, closing the distance between them, " I can think of a couple of options." She slowly trailed a finger down his chest, delighting in the blush that rose in his cheeks " We could say the hell with my injuries and make love until the sun comes up or neither of us has the energy to move, whichever comes first." Ron's eyes widened and his throat worked convulsively at the suggestion. However, Sheena was pressed closely enough against him that she could tell that not all of him was panicking about the idea. " Or," she continued with a wicked smile, " We could hop in the hovercraft, make a quick trip to Vegas, get married and retire some place away from Possible and Drakken and start a family. We'd have to adopt of course…but how would you feel about three…maybe four kids?" Through force of will alone she was able to keep a straight face at that last bit.

A sudden thud came from the island and both Ron and Sheena glanced over to find Rufus passed out. Damn, that was my plan Ron thought, the first hints of panic fluttering at the edge of his mind. There's no way she's serious about retiring and starting a family. Nope…she's just gotta be yanking my chain. Good one…really. Looking into her eyes however, he wasn't nearly as sure that she was kidding as his thoughts suggested. " Ah…well…if those are the options. I'd say lets go with the former." He replied hesitantly with a smile. Something flickered across her face, almost too quickly for him to see. Wait a second…she's not …disappointed, is she? He wondered.

Wait…why am I disappointed he didn't want to get married and have a family? Sheena mused I was just kidding. Wasn't I? The fact that she had to question her own motives didn't sit well at all. Suddenly looking at Ron a vision of a life with him, even if it meant small children constantly underfoot, surfaced in her mind and she quickly blinked it away. That just wasn't in the cards for her and she'd learned long ago there wasn't any point in wasting time and tears on "what if" scenarios. " Well then," she said as seductively as possible, not entirely successful at keeping the disappointment from her voice, " We should go somewhere a little more comfortable, shouldn't we?" Stepping back, she took his hand and began to lead him out of the kitchen.

" Sheena…wait.." Ron said gently, pulling back against her, " You know it's not that…." He was interrupted by the all too familiar beeping of the Kimmunicator in his pocket. Figures he groused silently Well this time I'm not taking the call.. Looking into her beautiful green eyes he tried again " What I was going to say is…the marriage thing…didn't sound bad…well except for the part that I'm in no way ready to be a father…but maybe someday…." Once again the Kimmunicator went off, somehow managing to sound even more insistent. " I'm not taking that," he said seriously looking into her eyes, " You're more important."

Sheena blinked away rapidly welling tears Not only would he seriously consider marrying me but he's ignoring the Princess? He really is in love. " You're serious?" she asked shakily, doing nothing to disguise awe that she felt. What about the plan? a voice piped up in the back of her mind You really think he'd still want you as a wife after you use him like that? Dream on. She gave the voice a none to gentle mental slap as she waited for Ron's response, wondering what he'd say.

However, she didn't get to find out what he might have said as the incessant beeping of the Kimmunicator and changed to Wade's somewhat muffled voice. " Ron! Ron! If you can hear me pick up. It's an emergency." Sheena and Ron shared a look and she nodded, and walked to the island, far enough away that she wouldn't be seen on the Kimmunicator's view screen but close enough to hear everything.

Ron snatched the device from his pocket, " This had better be one hell of an emergency Wade." He almost snarled at the younger man.

" Chill Ron," Wade said, holding his hands up defensively. " I'm on your side here." When the tension drained out of Ron to an acceptable level he continued, " Look, after you split on that motorcycle someone sent you, Kim kinda…well flipped out. As in she's gone stalker on you kind of flipped out. She told me to track your chip and…I'm sorry but you've seen a mad Kim…you know you don't say no."

Ron's eyes widened, he'd never thought Kim would show so little trust in him as to have him tracked when there wasn't any emergency. " How long do I have Wade?" he asked, stealing a glance at Sheena, his mind racing to figure out a way to keep her home from being discovered. Damn you Kim he fumed silently.

" Ten minutes, tops." Wade replied, " She's had me tracking you since you left. I was barely able to talk her out of calling in a favor to go after you, so she had to wait 'til her mom got home from the hospital and beg to borrow the car. That was about an hour ago…she's seriously speeding Ron, she's gotten two tickets already on the way so I'm guessing she's not in a good mood. If you've got a good reason for flaking out on her, I'd suggest using it, along with copious amounts of groveling."

" Thanks for the suggestion Wade," Ron said, barely managing not to roll his eyes, " But if KP's gone total stalker on me, I don't think I should be the one doing the groveling. And thanks for the heads up…I owe you one."

" Anytime Ron," Wade said, reaching to disconnect the transmission from his end and pausing, " Just one more thing. I don't know what's up with the two of you, and I don't really want to know. That's between you and Kim, which is why I'm not going to even bother asking where you are or whom you might be spending time with. Just make sure you know what you're getting into, and what you might have to give up." With that he ended the transmission.

Ron looked up from the Kimmunicator, an uneasy feeling settling into his gut. Is it my imagination or was he trying to tell me he knows something? he mused. Meeting Sheena's eyes, the uneasy feeling only intensified, " Hey" he started, holding up his hand defensively, " I haven't said anything to him about us. In fact the only people who know about our relationship are all in this room right now."

Sheena sighed, "You know, I should be mad, but I'm not. Nerdlinger probably did some serious hacking to find out where your bike came from, or once you stopped moving for any period of time scanned through every record he could find to see why you'd have stopped and found out about this place or something." She shook her head, " You know, I'm beginning to understand why Dr. D keeps putting self-destruct mechanisms in his lairs…I'm going to miss this place…I really liked it." Running her hand along the smooth steel of the island, she scooped Rufus up and walked over to Ron, cradling the mole rat against her carefully. " Look, I'm going to have to bug out, you can wait here for Kimmie if you want. Maybe I can come back later and salvage whatever the police don't confiscate."

A sudden inspiration struck Ron. " Why on earth would the police be coming here? You said you got this place under your civilian identity."

Sheena looked at him, exasperation clearly written across her face. He's really a sweet heart, and I love him, but sometimes he can be so freaking dense . " Ummm…because they're never too far behind Kimmie? Usually to pick up the bad guys. And since nerdlinger pretty much told you he knew who's here with you, it's not much of a leap to believe the cops will be right behind Possible." She crossed her arms over her chest, daring him to argue with that logic.

" Au contraire," Ron grinned, " Wade did hint that he had some inkling of who might be here, but he also said he was staying out of it. And since KP is just coming looking for me, there's no reason for her to expect to find you here. Now lets add in the fact that you have no blatantly identifying personal items anywhere except for in the bedroom here and she'd have no reason to think this might be your house. As long as you keep her out of your bedroom closet anyway…" his grin widened as he waited for the implications of what he said to sink in.

Sheena stared at him in shock; she had to admit, he had a point. " You have a plan" she stated certainly, the first hints of a smile tugging at her lips. He nodded, taking Rufus from her hand and setting him into his pants pocket. " So, feel like sharing?". By the time he was done outlining the plan, she wore a grin almost identical to his own. Ok, I've got to come up with a way to split Team Possible that'll keep him with me. His plans are way better than Drakken's. Of course, that wasn't saying much, but right now his plan would allow her to keep her home if it worked. " Alright," she said, " lets do it before she gets here."

Moments later Ron found himself hogtied in the living room, a black bandana tied in his mouth as a gag and sporting a fresh, and quite painful, blackened right eye. He winced, despite the amount of convincing it had taken to get her to punch him, he had trouble believing that she hadn't taken any joy in it. Still, it was a necessary evil. Kim was a lot less likely to ask questions if she honestly believed that Shego had captured him to use as bait if he looked the part. She'd even, reluctantly, blasted the front door to nothing to make it look as if she'd broken in to the house. Note to self he mused as he waited to be "rescued", find a way to get the money to replace her door. It was the least he could do. He sighed, hearing the sound of squealing tires through the busted door; the only down side to his plan was that KP would insist on him going back to Middleton. The earliest he'd be able to sneak back would be tomorrow during school hours. The living room window was shattered by a grappling hook, which quickly imbedded itself in the wall and he groaned Damn, I'll have to replace that too…thanks Kim. The hook was quickly followed up by the form of his best friend, decked out in mission clothes, dropping into a crouch next to him.

Seeing Ron tied up and injured, all the anger Kim had felt towards him for ditching her earlier melted away to be replaced by concern. Oh Ron you froob she thought, carefully sidling over to her bound and gagged friend I'm not letting you out of my sight from now on. " Ron, are you ok? Who did this? Where are we?" When unintelligible mumbling met her barrage of questions she blushed. " Right, the gag. Let me take care of that." She gently removed the cloth from his mouth, surprised at how strongly she wanted to kiss him at that moment, despite the chances they were still in danger.

"Kim," he whispered, careful not to overact, " I'm fine, aside from the black eye. That kind of sucks. As to where we are, I'm not really sure. I was just joy riding when Shego ambushed me, then she blew a hole in this place's front door and disappeared somewhere into the back…I think she decided that robbing the place would give her something to do while she waited for you to show up." He struggled theatrically against his bonds, amazed that she seemed to be buying it. Yes…I came up with a plan that just might work…I rock hard! he congratulated himself, careful to keep his face from betraying his thoughts.

" So you were just bait to get to me?" Kim asked working at his bonds and looking around the room cautiously. Typical Shego she thought, annoyed Break into someone's house, knowing that it'll get trashed when we fight…maybe I can have Wade find out who owns this place and call in a couple favors to get at least the door and window taken care of. Ron's hands were free and she moved quickly and quietly to release his feet. " And what made her think her little plan would work?" she asked, finally getting his feet untied.

" Maybe because I know you're hot for the boy Kimmie," Shego sneered stepping out of the kitchen and casually leaning against the door frame, igniting her hands, " and you wouldn't want me to get to him first." She grinned, enjoying the shock and embarrassment clearly written on the red head's face.

" So not," Kim replied defensively, stepping away from Ron and slipping into a fighting stance, blushing fiercely. " So did you have a real reason or did you just want me to kick your ass? Cause if you feel the need for periodic ass kickings, I can give you my number, it'd be easier."

" Hmmm….are you hitting on me Kimmie? I didn't know you were so kinky," Shego smirked. She had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from outright laughing, as the cheerleader's blush deepened.

Kim's intended retort died on her lips as she felt more than saw Ron slip into one of his usual goofy fighting stances beside her. Oh good lord she sighed mentally. " And just what do you think you're doing?" She hissed, not tearing her eyes from her arch nemesis.

" Hey," He said, " she gave me a black eye. I think a little payback's in order." Rufus's head popped out from one of Ron's pockets, nodding vigorously in agreement.

" Ron, no" Kim said, actually turning her attention away from Shego and staring at him as though he'd sprouted a second head " Good against Monkeyfist is one thing, but Shego is still out of your leagu…" A green boot landing in her stomach hard enough to knock her back into the wall cut her off before she could finish chastising him.

" Ooh…sorry Princess," Shego said with a self satisfied grin, " Looks like I'm out of your league too. Not that there was any doubt of that."

Kim pushed herself away from the wall with an irritated glare at Ron, and leapt over her enemy, flipping in mid-air and landing behind her. As Shego turned to face her, Kim swept her leg out, easily tripping the older woman and rose back into a low fighting stance. A tight smile played across her lips; she'd never admit it to anyone, but there were few times she felt more alive than when she was locked in combat with the green skinned villain. " Starting to doubt it now Shego? Or do I need to knock you on your ass again?" she smirked

A menacing growl escaped Shego's throat as she pushed off the floor and launched herself at the waiting cheerleader. For his part, Ron had wisely backed away as far as he could from the two combatants. Oh, if only they could learn to settle their differences in some non-violent way…like jell-o wrestling his thoughts were interrupted by a sudden blast of plasma scorching the wall just inches above his head. " Right," he muttered, cringing, " This is not the best time in the world for getting lost in fantasies." Despite the fact that he knew Sheena wasn't trying to beat Kim bloody so much as drive her away, the fight looked pretty intense. " I hope she doesn't get so caught up that she forgets the plan," he said, looking down at Rufus who was watching the fight just as intently.

" Uh-huh, uh-huh, plan" Rufus agreed absently, wincing as Kim caught a blast of plasma to the chest that knocked her clear across the room and burned a rather large hole in her top. As she came to a rest next to the blown away front door, Shego slowly advanced on the younger girl's prone form. That was the cue Ron and Rufus had been waiting for. " Showtime," Rufus chirped excitedly before popping back inside Ron's pocket and pulling it shut after him.

" Well, well, well Kimmie," Shego smirked, " Looks like you're the one being knocked on her ass the most tonight." She ran an eye over Kim's body, making no secret of checking out the lacy black bra that was clearly visible through the hole in her shirt. " Now here's a surprise," she said in a voice low enough that only Kim would hear, " I'd have had you pegged for the plain white cotton type of girl Kimmie. I guess those rumors about just how wild you are really are true."

The comment had the results she'd hoped for and then some. " You bitch!" Kim screamed vehemently, coming to her feet and throwing a wild punch that Shego easily avoided. It was followed up by another, more controlled punch that grazed Shego's shoulder, causing the older woman to wince in pain. Kim pressed her attack with a powerful side kick that caught Shego in the chest and knocked her back into the ruined door frame. Kim advanced on her nemesis, so blinded by her anger and embarrassment that she didn't register the blast of plasma until it slammed into her lower leg, causing her to fall forward onto her face at Shego's feet.

" Good-bye Kimmie," Shego said coldly, raising both of her hands, glowing brightly than ever, and aiming them at the fallen redhead. Looking into the living room, she gave Ron a small nod and conspiratorial wink before addressing the fallen teen once more, " Maybe in your next life you'll be in my league."

" Nooooo," Ron screamed, hoping it sounded a lot more realistic than he thought it did, as he ran towards the combatants. Once he was in range, he leapt, throwing himself into Shego's stomach and sending both of them through the ruined front door. As they sailed over the edge of the porch, Sheena fired off two quick volleys of plasma at the roof just above the doorframe, causing a cloud of plaster and dust to rain down, blocking them from Kim's view for a few moments at least. At the last minute before impact with the ground, Ron twisted so that he was beneath Sheena, taking the force of the impact with his back and shoulder. " Are you ok?" he asked, gazing up into his love's eyes.

" Never better," She groaned rolling off of him and catching a glimpse of her battered home as she came to her feet. " Damn, there goes my free time for the next couple of days. Have I ever mentioned how much I hate home repairs?"

" At least you still have a home," Ron smiled, standing beside her and giving her a quick kiss, " I don't think she suspects anything, but you'd better make yourself scarce. I'll get her out of the area."

Sheena nodded reluctantly, " Yea. Wouldn't want a great plan to go to waste. Not to mention the extra bruises I'm going to have thanks to little miss perfect." She took a few steps towards the woods, before turning suddenly. " You'll come back tomorrow?" She asked nervously, looking down at her feet.

Ron quickly closed the distance between them and gently lifted her chin. " Of course I will," he said, kissing her again. " Now go." He smiled and gave her a little push towards the woods, turning his head to make sure Kim wasn't watching everything. Fortunately there was still some dust falling, and he could just barely make out a pool of red hair still laying on the floor. Oh, I hope she's conscious he thought heading back up onto the porch. A quick glance behind him revealed that Sheena had disappeared, and he continued to the ruined doorway and kneeling beside his friend. " KP, are you alright?" Hoping she wasn't too injured, he reached out and gave her shoulder a gentle push, " Kim?"

" Shirt," She said, raising her head slowly. Amazingly the only injury seemed to be a shallow cut on her forehead, that, like most head wounds, was bleeding profusely.

" What?" He asked, helping her up into a sitting position. Oh please don't tell me she has a concussion, I really don't want to explain to Mrs. Dr. P how it's my fault if she does."

" I kind of need a shirt Ron," she said, motioning to the large hole in hers and blushing. Ok this is not how I'd planned on him seeing me in lingerie for the first time she thought, and violently cursed Shego for the hole. Seeing as her shirt was ruined anyway, she pulled it off and ripped a long strip of material from it, tying it around her head as a makeshift bandage. " Sometime today would be nice Ron," she said, holding out a hand.

Ron blushed and looked away, praying that Sheena would not kill him for seeing Kim in just her bra and cargo pants, it was the most he could hope for because he knew that even though he couldn't see her, she could probably see and hear them very clearly. " Ah, sure thing KP" He pulled off his shirt and handed it to her blindly, thankful that the evening wasn't too cool to be topless. He waited a few more moments for good measure before turning around to face his friend again. " Need a hand up?" he asked, standing.

" Thanks," she replied taking his hand and allowing him to help her to her feet. Ok kim, whatever you do, don't stare at his chest. He didn't go all gooey over yours, the least you can do is show him the same respect She reminded herself, doing her best to ignore the small part of her that was disappointed that her being topless, if still wearing a bra had so little effect on him. " Let me guess," she said bitterly, " she got away?"

"Sorry KP," Ron nodded, " I was a little stunned after tackling her, and she ran like hell. I'd have gone after her, but Rufus thought it was a better idea to check on you." Rufus popped his head out of Ron's pocket and nodded. Ron smiled Rufus is many things, but a bad wingman isn't one of them.. Taking Kim's hand and leading her down the stairs towards her mother's station wagon a thought occurred to him, " Um Kim? You took a pretty nasty fall are you sure you're alright to drive?"

She frowned, " I should be. Why?"

"Well," he hedged, " If you want, we can try loading my bike into the back and I can drive us back to Middleton. Just in case." He didn't particularly like the idea, but it was the best way to be sure that Kim got home safely. After all, while he might have been questioning his continuing with Team Possible, it didn't mean that he wanted his best friend to end up in a ditch somewhere.

Kim's heart thundered in her chest That is so sweet. I came out here to rescue him and he ends up rescuing me, and letting me wear his shirt! Granted, I had to ask for it, but that doesn't really matter in the long run, does it? Nah! . And the fact that she'd get to ride home with a very attractive topless man had nothing to do with her decision at all, nope. " Thanks Ron," she said smiling and giving his hand a squeeze, pulling him towards his motorcycle, " I'd appreciate that."

From her hiding spot just past the edge of the forest, Sheena fumed as she watched Kim play up her head injury to get Ron to consent to driving her back to Middleton. Hussy she seethed, briefly regretting not finishing Possible for good when she'd had the shot. She shook her head chasing the thought away. I may not be the best person in the world, but I'm not a killer. Still, Kim was certainly going to have a lot more bruises the next time they met. " I didn't even get to say good-bye, or tell him that I love him again" she pouted quietly as she watched the red station wagon pull away from her home. She briefly considered heading for her hovercraft and beating them back to Middleton and waiting for Ron in his room, but decided against it. Kimmie's probably going to be extra protective of him at least for tonight. She'll probably even want to take care of that black eye I gave him. Deciding that she'd hidden long enough, she emerged from the woods, angrily stomping towards her house It's not fair! I gave it to him, I should be the one to take care of him. He's my boyfriend. Unfortunately, as she wasn't quite ready to permanently split Team Possible, there was little she could do at the current time. " Guess I'd better clean up and try to find something to cover the door and window until I can get them fixed," she muttered heading into her battered home.

It took some doing, but half an hour later she'd managed not only to clean away the debris from her battle with Possible, but she'd also removed two closet doors and used them as to cover the window and the door. She was seriously considering bed, if for no other reason than to try and heal and kill the hours until she could see Ron again, when she was stirred from her thoughts by a sharp rapping on the "door". He came back she thought with uncharacteristic girlish optimism as she practically flew to the door, a delighted smile on her face as she pulled the door back into the hall to reveal the form of…Senior Senior Junior.

" Ah, Shego, hello" The darkly tanned, man said with what she was sure he considered to be a charming smile. " These are for you." In his hands were what appeared to be roughly a dozen red roses.

Shego simply stared at the flowers, dumbfounded. There is no way in hell this is happening she thought grimly. " SSJ," she said as politely as she could, " What the hell are you doing here? And for that matter, how did you know where I live? I'm not exactly listed."

"Ah, yes," he said, his smile broadening and offering the flowers once more, " I was wondering if you were not busy tomorrow if you would like to accompany me to the former billionaire's club. Father is having a formal dance there to celebrate the final modifications to it that will make it our summer home. I would be honored if you would be my date."

Ok, don't blast him, it's bad business. She reminded herself, though it did nothing to calm her nerves. " I'll ask again," she said, " How did you get this address Junior?"

" Oh, that." He said, a frown crossing his face as if he couldn't understand why she wouldn't accept the flowers, " I called Dr. Drakken. I figured that he would know and he gave me his blessing to ask you on a date." Seconds later, Senior Senior Junior found himself pushed back out onto the porch and a door firmly shut in his face. " So, is that a yes, a no or a maybe?" He asked plaintively, " Shego? Hello?"

On the opposite side of the door, Shego had to fight the urge to scream and her hands just itched to blast something into oblivion. Drakken gave him his blessing to date me? What the hell? I'm not his daughter! Oh he's going to pay for this…oh yes, he's going to pay. Still fuming, she stalked into the living room and found her most high impact aerobics DVD, as keyed up as she was from the fight with Kimmie and now this bit of aggravation, there was no chance in hell she was getting any sleep tonight.


	9. Blow outs and blow ups

Bad as she wants me to be

Chapter Nine: Blowouts and Blowups.

Author: RoguesKnight

Rating: M/MA…violence, language, etc.

Disclaimer: Still not mine. Despite the amount of time and love going into this story, and the fact Disney cancelled the series, I think their lawyers would have a problem with me claiming the characters.

Author's note: That's right, I have returned! Thanks to those of you who have stuck with me and prodded me back into writing. Vaneguard, Zataran, Aero Tendo, Raven Suguara the Tenken, Lonely Reader, Kitsune-Itai, Akemi, Whatever Star, Texan Ranger, HorusRei, campy, Vegeta666, BrianDarkSoul, Oblivionknight7, psychoron, Azant, Duke, momike, Triaxx2, Kitsune6, Vega, James Trammell III, graphic, aaron924, FAH3, Revenant666, Drazen Flames, Merridian, SkyMaiden, Ironsct, Psychic Werewolf Assassin, Mrs. Elektra Murdock, Hash-Slinging Slasher-HI, Mr. Picky, Bob the dancing flea,Starlorn, Ramafan, Cold-Chaos, bloodrain01, and anonymous. Last but not least, thanks to my beautiful wife who has been encouraging me every day to " write more kim story"…if there is anyone I have missed here, you too have my heartfelt thanks for your patience and support.

And without further ado, back to the show.

Driving back to Middleton, Ron did everything he could to keep from looking at his best friend sitting beside him in the passenger seat. He knew there was a chance that she'd find the lack of obvious concern for her well being a bit out of character, but he didn't care. First chance I get he groused silently I'm having Wade deactivate that damn tracking chip. He couldn't believe that Kim had the nerve to abuse it like she had or that she honestly believed that he was still so incompetent that she needed to be able to track him in the first place. Thinking over the events of the evening he felt himself growing more and more angry, and his hands clutched the steering wheel until it was almost painfully pressed into his palms. Just where does she get off tracking me like that? It's not like she's my jealous girlfriend who needs to know where I am every second that I'm not with her. She's got Mankey, and for what it's worth, she can have him. They deserve each other. Still, the thought that Kim might actually be jealous gave him pause. Stealing a glance from the corner of his blackened right eye, he caught Kim staring at him with pure adoration. Oh crap he thought, his heartbeat quickening, I really don't need this right now. While he'd admittedly had fantasies involving both Kim and Shego before, he had a feeling that there was no way that Shego would agree to share him with Kim. Surprisingly, he didn't want her to either. Hmmmm…in love and mature…never thought either of those would really apply to me he mused. Maybe in his new, mature, state he could find a way to let Kim down gently. " Ahh…Kim is the head injury finally getting to you or do you have something to say? Cause the staring at me thing is really kinda creepy."

Kim felt a deep blush color her cheeks. Smooth Possible, real smooth. Whatever happened to showing him respect by not staring at his chest?. " Ahhh…just trying to see if she hurt you anywhere else." Like under your pants for example . She quickly squashed the thought down and fought to keep from blushing more. Still, she couldn't deny that more and more she was noticing just how attractive Ron was. Nor could she deny that Shego's causal observation of Kim's attraction had gotten under her skin. Let's just see her try to "get to him first" now She thought smugly.

Ron let a tight smile cross his lips, " Nope…you rescued me before she could do more than give me this shiner…" hoping that she didn't hear the sarcasm in his voice, he let go of the wheel and gingerly touched the skin around his eye; and immediately winced in response. It was for a good cause He reminded himself, setting his hand back on the wheel. " Although," he continued " She did have some rather interesting propositions on how we could have passed the time until you arrived."

Kim paled, staring at him as if he'd been the one with the head injury. " Ron! That's Shego you're talking about! I mean I know you've been kind of hard up for attention from women for…ok…so as long as I've known you, but come on, Shego? You can do much better than that." Like, oh, I dunno, me for example she added silently.

Ron frowned, once again gripping the wheel tightly enough to whiten his knuckles. " And just what would be wrong with a relationship with Shego? I mean theoretically if she were interested why should I pass? It's not like there's a line of women waiting at my door for me to ask them out. And just who do you think would be better for me than Shego?" he asked angrily. This should be interesting to hear he thought, sparing a quick glance at his friend who was clearly taken aback by his tone.

Kim's eyes widened in shock He almost yelled at me…Ron's never yelled at me…maybe I went over the line this time in teasing him about his lack of luck with the ladies. Still, it wasn't the wisest idea in the world to get into a screaming match with someone who was driving, so she took a deep breath before answering him. " Ok, lets start with what's wrong with Shego. For one thing, she's…oh, I dunno…evil?"

" You know, Kim, good and evil are largely based on our points of view" he countered tightly, keeping his eyes on the road.

Kim's eyes widened in shock. There was no way he was actually defending Shego; she must have heard him wrong. " Ok Obi-Wan," she snapped, " Lets get a little more specific then. She frequently helps a deluded mad man try to take over the world. Which, by the way, often includes trying to get us out of the picture by any means necessary. I think that qualifies her as evil. Don't you?" She stared at him, waiting for a response; when it was obvious one wasn't coming, she continued, " As for what could be wrong with a relationship with Shego? Ummm..hello…she's evil, you're not. I mean what could you possibly have in common?"

Ron fought the urge to slam on the brakes and give Kim a very detailed description of just what they had in common when he heard a low growl coming from his pants pocket. Sparing a glance downward he saw Rufus's head poking out of the pocket and glaring at Kim, his teeth bared menacingly. Whoa He mused Rufus is sticking up for Sheena…I've got to remember to tell her about that. Still, it wouldn't do for both of them to appear to be defending Shego; Kim might start to get suspicious. " Easy Rufus," Ron placated the mole rat, " Kim could have a point. It's not likely, but, hey, anything's possible for a Possible." Rufus sent a final glare Kim's way and popped back inside the pocket.

Kim blinked, not quite sure how to take the left-handed compliment. Ok, Ron and that much sarcasm is new she observed It's probably just the black eye talking. Can't be easy to keep both eyes on the road when one of them hurts. Maybe I should offer to take over driving, I mean my head doesn't hurt that much. " Thanks for the support" she said, forcing herself to smile, " Look, all I'm saying is that there are better girls out there for you…girls who aren't criminals for one thing."

Ron glanced at her quickly before returning his eyes to the road. " Name one." He said simply, his normally cheerful voice emotionless.

Ok Kim She reassured herself He deserves to hear how you've been feeling about him. You knew that this moment would come and you can do it. Besides, you're Shego's complete opposite, who better to show that there are better girls out there, even if you're just discussing this theoretically. " Ummm….Bonnie?" She suggested with a weak smile. Coward

This time Ron did slam on the brakes, sending the occupants of the car forward against their seat belts before turning to stare at her. It's gotta be the head wound, she's delusional…or maybe she's lost her short term memory…man oh, man, I'm going to have to tell the Drs. P it's my fault their daughter has massive head trauma " Ah, KP," he ventured cautiously, " Despite my knack for getting kicked around by assorted villains, I'm not actually a masochist. Well…not that I'm aware of anyway. And while I agree something needs to be done to get back at Bonnie and Josh, I don't think that getting her to date me is really fair. I mean I'm the innocent one here."

Kim blushed deeply; she'd been so focused on Ron's weirdness that it had taken her mind off the whole Josh…unpleasantness. " Ok…ok…so that wasn't exactly the best example I could have come up with," she admitted as Ron got the car moving again. Maybe I should just let him know that I'm interested she mused, biting her lower lip anxiously and gazing out the passenger side window. I mean, I'm way better than Shego and Bonnie combined, and I've known him for forever, who'd really be better suited for Ron than me? She couldn't deny it to herself any longer, she had somehow fallen for Ron Stoppable, and fallen hard. She allowed a small smile to cross her lips Now, all I have to do is find the perfect time to tell him. Looking out the window, she saw a sign noting that Middleton was only twenty miles away. Hmmm….or I could just wait til he gets me home and show him how I feel. I'm sure dad wouldn't really put him into a deep space probe if I gave him one little kiss….pretty sure anyway. She chuckled nervously, drawing Ron's attention.

" What, manage to come up with someone even worse for me than Bonnie? Let me guess…DNAmy's been paroled and is looking for some mad monkey love with a little less emphasis on the monkey?" he asked, doing nothing to hide his annoyance. My whole night's been ruined, I have a black eye, and she's over there giggling and trying to play match maker? Great he thought darkly

Kim shuddered " Ewww…so no. But thank you oh so much for putting that lovely image in my head, I'd just like you to know that thanks to you I won't be sleeping tonight." She fought back a blush, thinking of the multiple reasons that she could miss out on sleep thanks to Ron.

"KP," he said casually, " I know that you're upset about the whole thing with Josh blowing up like it has, but come on, there's no way you're hard up enough to want me to be responsible for your loss of sleep" He waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

" Oh, if only you knew." Kim half whispered, keeping her eyes out the window. Mystical monkey power doesn't give him telepathic abilities does it? she mused worriedly. She'd never let him know, but the remark hit way too close to home for her taste. Another worry crossed her mind almost immediately Wait, he thinks I'd only want to be with him because I was hard up for some action? Biting her lip again, she decided that perhaps she shouldn't wait to let him know just how much he meant to her and what she felt. It might even take some drastic example she mused, a faint blush coloring her cheeks Like, oh, leaping across the car and kissing his brains out. Granted, she was much too practical to distract him while he was driving, but a little harmless fantasy never hurt anyone. " Ron," She started softly and sincerely, waiting for him to acknowledge her, " there's something I need to tell you."

Ron winced Oh man, there is no way that something good is going to follow that statement. It's right up there with "we need to talk". But what could she have to tell me? His mind raced over the events of the past few days and came to only one conclusion. Oh god, she's pregnant… " You know Kim," he stated turning to look at her, " No matter what happens I'll always be there for you. I mean, if it means doing some babysitting or making a late night run to Smarty Mart for diapers or formula or something, you can always, you know call me…" Unfortunately as he rambled on uncontrollably, he failed to notice a rather nasty piece of metal laying in the path of the right front tire and he found his well meaning words cut short by a sudden need to fight for control of the car. Miraculously, he managed to navigate the damaged vehicle to the side of the road without further incident. " Everyone ok?" he asked, trying to hide the tremor in his voice. Rufus, looking a little green but otherwise alright, popped his head out of Ron's pocket and nodded in the affirmative. " Kim…you ok?"

Kim blinked, more in shock from Ron's rambling about her being pregnant than the unexpected side trip. He's really mastered the art of jumping to conclusions, hasn't he? She mused, mildly amused despite the seriousness of the situation And yet, here he is pledging to help me out in any way he can. Something tells me that Josh would have jumped the first bus to anywhere if I told him I was pregnant. Hmmm…something to consider. Gradually she became aware of Ron's hand waving in front of her face and reached out to grab it, holding it gently in her own. " Amp down Ron, I'm fine. Just needed a second to pull myself together. How about we step outside and take a look at the damage?" She smiled and opened her door, giving Ron's hand a squeeze before letting it go.

" Ok Rufus," Ron said seriously, giving his pocket a tap to get the mole rat's attention, " The shock of the accident and the head trauma from the fight with Shego, and the pregnancy are probably going to add up to one nice mess in the very near future. I'm gonna need your help." He didn't bother to add in the part about not knowing what he'd need the help with as Rufus seemed eager to do anything he could. " Alright buddy, lets go take a look at the damage." With that, he climbed out of the driver's side door and walked around to the front of the vehicle. On the bright side, he'd managed to get the car to the side of the road and stopped without actually running into anything. Unfortunately the right front tire was all but torn off of the car and still embedded in it was a spikey shard of metal, about a foot in length. Propping a foot against the car, Ron grasped the end of the rod and pulled it free. Who the hell leaves shards of metal in the middle of the freaking road? he wondered, turning it over in his hand. It couldn't have been from an accident, it didn't look like any car part he'd ever seen. Granted, his knowledge of cars and mechanics was severely limited, but he was pretty sure that foot long spikes were not part of it. " Great, just freaking great," he shouted, hurling the offending piece of debris off into the woods that lined the road.

He's cute when he's frustrated Kim thought before giving herself a mental slap. Ok, this is not the time to admire the cuteness that is Ron. She calmly pulled her Kimmunicator from her pants pocket and flipped it on. " Hey Wade, I managed to find Ron…but we've got a sitch. Do you think you could send a tow truck to our location? We've got a flat."

There was a clattering of keys from the super genius's computer before he leaned back with a satisfied smile, propping his hands behind his head. " Done. I called in a favor for you and a truck should be there in about half an hour."

" Please and thank you." Kim responded. As she moved to turn the small device back off, she was stopped by Wade's voice.

" Kim, I don't mean to criticize or anything," he nervously tugged at the collar of his shirt, " But you save the world on a regular basis. Are you telling me that changing a flat tire is beyond you? I mean, I could even talk you through it if you need me to."

Kim sighed and brushed a lock of auburn hair back from her face with her free hand. " Actually Wade, I know how to change a tire. The problem is, we don't have one in the station wagon anymore. The tweebs apparently decided that it would be just perfect for their last doomed invention and mom and dad haven't gotten around to replacing it." The tone of her voice suggested that the experiment that had taken the spare tire wasn't the only thing that was doomed.

" I see," Wade winced, glad that he wasn't in Kim's brothers' shoes at the moment. " Well, you and Ron just sit tight and help should be there soon." His eyes narrowed suddenly, taking in her disheveled appearance. " Say, isn't that Ron's shirt you're wearing? And how's he doing anyway?"

" Long story Wade," Kim answered doing nothing to hide the blush creeping up her neck, " I'll fill you in later. There's something I need to take care of right now though." Without waiting for a reply, Kim shut the device off and shoved it back into her pocket before walking over to Ron. " Help's on the way," she informed him with a smile, " We've just got to stick it out until it gets here."

Ron groaned and slapped a hand over his eyes Oh man, can this night get any worse? I mean really, can it? Dragged away from the woman I love, my eye hurts like hell, and on top of everything else, now I have to wait in the middle of nowhere to be rescued with a pregnant Kim…what next? He slowly slid his hand down his face and turned to stare at Kim. " I'm going to kill the tweebs for taking the spare. I want you to know that."

"Get in line," she laughed bitterly, envisioning the destruction she was going to visit on her obnoxious brothers, "but as I was going to tell you before we got stranded out here, no I'm not pregnant. Thank god. I don't really want Mankey to be the father of any of my children." She shuddered at the mere thought of being linked to someone so cruel for the rest of her life like that Why didn't I notice what an asshole he was before hand? Ron certainly spent enough time trying to warn me about him. Now Ron as the father of my kids…not a bad thought….ok, baby steps Kim…you still have to tell him how you feel. And hope he feels the same. She was pretty sure that he did.

" Oh thank god," Ron blurted, thoroughly relieved, " so if you're not an expectant mother, I won't have to go to jail for murdering Monkey boy. So what is it you need to tell me or talk about or whatever."

Kim took a deep breath and let it out slowly; it was now or never. " This," she said simply before closing her eyes and kissing him tenderly on the lips.

Ron froze in shock and to a large degree, fear. Oh god, Sheena's going to find out about this, and I'm going to die, slowly and painfully. he thought. The only factor that might even earn him the slightest bit of leniency from his love was the fact that he wasn't kissing Kim back. Once the shock wore off and his brain started working again, he firmly pushed her away, glad that her eyes were still closed so she couldn't see the fear on his face. " Just what the hell was that about?" he demanded.

Kim blinked, feeling tears begin to form in her large green eyes, " You." She said, before elaborating, " It was about you…how I feel about you Ron. I knew that you wouldn't believe me if I just used words so I had to be a little more direct." She took a deep breath to calm herself, though her next words still came out in a rush. " Ron, I love you. You've always been there, always believed in me. I was a fool not to see it, but we're perfect for each other…I love you, and you love me, why fight it?"

From Ron's pocket, Rufus gasped and quickly passed out. Oh yea, take the easy way out Ron thought towards his naked mole rat friend Leave me to face Kim alone. Wonder if I'll end up with a second black eye for letting her down gently. If I can figure out how.. " Ahh…KP," he started, " I know things are just a little crazy right now and you're not thinking clearly so I'll chalk that up to the whole Bonnie and Josh thing and the head trauma from your fight." He inched away slowly, hoping to put some distance between them in case he needed to bolt. " But, I'm sorry, I don't love you. Not in the way that you want me to. You'll always be like a sister to me, and my best friend, but that's all we are, friends." Wow, never thought I'd be the one giving the just friends speech to anyone he mused.

Friends? Kim's mind reeled at the word as she pondered how she'd been able to so grossly misjudge what his reaction would be. Could I really be wrong about all the little things over the years that showed how he felt about me? Of course not. He must be in denial out of fear of being hurt…maybe I rushed things with the kiss " Ron, it's ok," She said softly, holding out a hand towards him, " I know this is really sudden, but you don't have to be afraid of your emotions. Look, I know in the past I may have been a little callous…maybe didn't treat you quite as well as I should have, but those days are gone. We have a bright future ahead of us, and I promise I'll keep dad from putting you into a deep space probe."

Ok, could she be any more self-centered? She is not the entirety of my life. Just because she needs some rebound guy and thinks that I'm up for the job does not mean I'm just going to throw myself into her arms he groused angrily. Maybe it was time that he stood up to her for once. "Kim," he said firmly, " I'm not afraid of being hurt by you. Again. I've been there so many times that I'm numb to it, and ya know what? I'm glad. It's given me the opportunity to see that there are other women in the world than the great and mighty Kim Possible who can do anything…_except accept the fact that I just want to be friends_." Shaking his head in disgust, he walked to the back of the station wagon and threw the hatch open forcefully before retrieving his motorcycle and helmet from within. God I am I glad it was just a flat tire that stranded us, if we'd been hit or something I might not be able to do this he thought, reaching down to securely fasten the pocket containing Rufus Wouldn't want the little guy being sucked out or anything.

Kim was stunned Since when has Ron had enough of a back bone to get in my face like that? she mused, her mind refusing to accept the fact that he was about to abandon her with a broken down car The next thing you know he'll be telling Shego to go fuck herself. Still, even if it's me he's standing up to, it's kind of attractive. I always told him he just needed more confidence in who he was. She walked up to the side of the motorcycle as Ron revved the engine to life. " Ron, wait," she started, raising her voice to be heard as he revved the engine a second time, " You're not seriously going to leave me out here alone are you?" She'd never admit it, lest he developed a big head again, but she'd always known what the "Ron factor" GJ had been interested was. It was his faith in her, their incredibly strong bond of friendship, that let her take all the risks that she did, because she knew she could count on him to have her back in tight spots. Without him, she was really quite insecure about just what she could do. Unfortunately, it seemed, she was going to have to find out.

" Come on Kimmie," he sneered, glaring at her through the plastic visor on his helmet, " You said it yourself, help is on the way." He felt a smirk tug at the corners of his mouth at her stunned face I shouldn't have called her Kimmie, she'll probably think that Shego brain washed me or something while I was "kidnapped" Even so, he had to admit that it was quite satisfying to see that he could actually stun her into silence. " So, if you're scared, just climb back into the car and wait for the tow truck. You can even call Wade to keep you company, or Monique or anyone else really, but not me." With that he raised took off down the road into the night. I've got to talk Wade into disabling my microchip he thought as the world whipped by She is definitely abusing it. He wished he could just drive back to Sheena's house and help begin repairs since it was his plan that got the place trashed, but knew that at the moment it was too risky. I wonder how she's doing. Little did he know her night wasn't going much better than his own.

It had taken her turning the aerobics DVD to the highest volume setting her television could possibly reach and working out for an hour and a half for Junior to finally take the hint that she wasn't interested and get the hell off of her porch. When the coast was at last clear, Sheena exhaustedly walked over to the set and turned it off. On the bright side, the workout had gotten her muscles feeling nice and loose and the residual aches from her fight with Possible had completely disappeared. " Course, there are better ways to get a decent workout," she muttered, flopping down boneless onto her couch, " but I'd really need a partner to enjoy the full benefits." A slow smile spread across her face as she imagined what Ron's reaction would be to her asking him to help her work out. Then again, he'll probably think I mean it in the standard sense of working out or that I want a sparring partner or something Of course, that wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing either. She had to admit that when he wasn't focused on Possible's safety all the time, Ron was a damn good fighter. " Kimmie's wrong," she said to the empty room, " Ron's a lot closer to being in my league than she'll ever be. I mean Monkeyfist is no slouch in the hand to hand arena, granted he's still not as good as me, but he's close and more ruthless which pushes him even closer to my league but he's still afraid of Stoppable." The thought gave her pause, Kim might not be able to beat her, but could Ron if he had sufficient reasoning? Like if he thought she was just using him to get to Kim? She couldn't answer the question and that worried her. It's not going to blow up in my face…besides, he knows I love him. Now anyway. Does it really matter what my original intentions were? Of course not. The plan's perfect, I'll end up with Stoppable by my side, and Kimmie'll get her ass handed to her and her spirit completely and irrevocably broken. Nevertheless, she couldn't shake the feeling that things could go terribly wrong if she wasn't careful. But then, she was always careful. " It'll work," she reassured herself, laying her head back and staring at the ceiling, " I mean, it's not like it's one of Drakken's plans or anything." Drakken. The mere thought of her nominal boss trying to set her up on a date caused her powers to surge to life, leaving two blackened hand prints on the green leather.

" That arrogant son of a bitch," she growled, forcing her powers back under her control before they completely destroyed her sofa, " He gave his blessing for Junior to ask me on a date? What next setting a curfew for when I need to be back from stealing something for him?" She pushed herself up from the couch and paced angrily. It wasn't that she found Junior unattractive, in fact she'd enjoyed his attention when she'd been his tutor, but the boy wasn't her type, something about his being as dumb as a box of hammers. No, what was more infuriating was Dr. D's presumption that he could not only give someone permission to date her like he was her father, but the fact he didn't have any compunctions against giving out her unlisted address. " Just because he likes his lairs to be so far from secret as to be laughable doesn't mean the rest of us do." She fumed. There was only one thing that she could do now…renegotiate her contract to specifically include a hands off policy with regards to her personal life, and a generous bonus to keep her from walking out the door and not coming back this time. Although, I could just leave…maybe give the hero thing a try again? Nah as tempting as the thought of being able to be open about her relationship with Ron was, she just couldn't see herself putting up with the princess for any extended period of time without killing her. Besides, evil was so much more fun than good.

Sheena stalked over to her computer center, thankful that it had been spared destruction in her fight with Possible, and fired up her video conferencing program, making sure the camera was angled just right so the first thing Dr. Drakken would see when he answered would be her scowling face. She glanced at the clock on the monitor; at nearly three in the morning a scowling Shego would be a sight to rob the man of sleep for the rest of the night. Finally Drakken appeared on the monitor, he was wearing blue paisley pajamas and a blue sleep mask with pink teddy bears on it was pulled up onto his forehead. " Shego," he barked, blinking sleepily, " Do you have any idea what time…." Noticing the expression on her face and the fire blazing in her emerald eyes he paused, " Is there something wrong?"

" Hmmm….let me see. Yes!" She shouted, slamming a fist against her desk with enough force to shatter the edge of it even without the aid of her plasma Damn it she seethed I really liked this desk too…my price just went up again. Turning her attention back to the blue skinned nitwit, she made sure the next words out of her mouth held the appropriate level of threat of pain, which was to say lots. " What on earth did you think you were doing telling Junior where I live? And furthermore, who the hell died and made you my father? I'll date who I want to date. End of discussion."

Drakken gulped noisily, obviously taken aback, " Come now Shego, be reasonable. Junior's a nice young man, and I know for a fact that he really likes you." Seeing that this tract of logic was getting him nowhere fast, he continued, " Plus, he and his father are filthy rich. Just think what we could do with that money after you've gotten him wrapped around your little finger. World domination isn't cheap you know." All things considered, it was possibly the worst argument he could have made to support his actions.

Sheena felt her blood boil " I am not your whore." She hissed, her eyes narrowing into dangerous slits. She'd never killed anyone before, but had she been in the same room with Drakken at that moment, there was a very good chance she would have. " I never will be Drew," she added, spitting his name like a curse, " You know, I think this is reason enough for me to terminate my employment Unless…along with a very generous bonus…and lets say, an extra two weeks **paid** vacation…you have a very, very good reason for thinking you could pimp me out to finance whatever whack plan you have going without asking me first. And by asking me, I mean giving me a chance to beat you to a bloody pulp and walk away." She folded her arms over her chest and waited for his reply.

Drakken could feel a cold bead of sweat begin a path down his back. Maybe including Shego more in the planning stages of his plans from now on would be a good idea. " Ah…I just wanted to see you happy?" he replied lamely, trying a cherubic smile that didn't quite work. Seeing her hands flame to life, he decided to try again. " Ok, ok. I just thought it would be an easy way to get money to finance my ultimate plan. The plan that will allow us to take over the world. I mean, once we rule the world you could just dump Junior and move far away to Iceland like you've always wanted, right? Besides how else was I supposed to get the money? Theses new syntho-drones aren't cheap to make you know."

Sheena's jaw dropped in sheer incredulity No, there's no way he's actually that stupid…it's not possible. I mean this is a new level of stupidity even for Drakken. She fixed his image with a glare " Hmmmm…how to get money? Let's see, you were willing to jack a kid's wheel chair for its cybertronic technology and yet you can't figure out a better way than pimping me out to improve your finances. Let me give you a hint…you're a criminal, fucking rob a bank or something!" He seemed about to argue until she pointed a blazing finger at the camera so that it appeared to be aimed right between his eyes, " And don't even think about giving me that lame ass excuse about how low brow common crime is. Cause, I got a news flash for ya Drew. If you haven't noticed, Kim Possible rarely spends her time chasing common criminals and the Middleton police aren't going to win any prizes for competence any time soon, which means they usually get away. You, on the other hand, continually attract her attention with over the top schemes doomed to failure. Would it help if I drew you a picture?"

Drakken scowled, his brow furrowing in thought " You're saying that I should…rob a bank to finance my world domination?"

" One, ten, who cares! The point is that there's a good chance you could get away with it, at least a few times, just because no one expects you to try something so simple. And, I wouldn't have to kill you for pimping me out" She retorted, a small smile gracing her features now that he seemed to finally be catching on.

" Alright Shego, we'll try it your way. Tomorrow, we strike at the First National Bank of Middleton….the first step to our eventual world domination…well…the second step if you count the improved syntho-drones as the first step….or would it be the third since you had to steal the…" He rambled pointlessly.

" Uh-huh, right. You just give me a buzz later and let me know when it's going down Dr. D." She smirked, fully aware that he wasn't paying attention to her as she ended the transmission. Granted, they'd still have to hammer out the details of her contract's revisions, but she figured that fifty percent of whatever they got from the bank plus the contents of any and all lock boxes would be a nice down payment on keeping her services. With that thought she headed off to bed, fighting the usual excitement she felt before a job. We could actually get away with a crime without interference from little miss perfect for once. Tomorrow might not be a bad day to be a bad guy…well girl. She slipped out of her jumpsuit and walked into her bedroom closet, changing into a dark green night gown and flopped onto her bed. Her eyes had closed for an instant when another thought jerked them open again. Crap. Ron's coming over tomorrow…well…we can still pull off a bank job and I can get back here for some snuggles Even to herself the thought seemed hollow, and she had a hard time falling asleep, not nearly excited about the next day's crime as she was worried about missing the chance to see her love.


	10. Surprise, Surprise

Bad as she wants me to be

Chapter 10: Surprise, surprise.

Author: RoguesKnight

Rating: M/MA….language, violence, sexuality. Almost exactly in that order…hmmm…

Disclaimer: Kim Possible, et al. are still not mine. Trust me, if they were, you'd see new episodes on the air even if it meant detailing the stars' cars myself. Of course, I don't know how to detail cars, so it probably wouldn't be on for very long.

Author's notes: Sorry for the delay folks. Adjusting to married life and full time work isn't quite as easy as it sounds on TV. Much thanks to everyone who's been encouraging me to keep updating. Campy, oblivionknight7, Triaxx2, Zaratan, the shadowless one, x-EMP-t, MustangGT, FAH3, momike, Horus Rei, Obliviondragon, sweet, Psychic Werewolf Assassin, Duke, Chris Bennet, devilteendragon, KityKatKoko, James Trammell III, J or the Blind, Hash-Slinging Slasher-Hi, Cold-Chaos, starlorn, Raven Sugara the Tenken, Tim, thecatthatwas, Harufu, Merridian, BrianDarkSoul, Vegeta666, Revenant666, VentMonster, JPElles, Kitsune6, Foolish-comic-dude, Graph, Saint Raven, Hallucinations, the phantom Hokage, dark kitty, erik, Some?One, Devinel, g, Joe Dalton, jacketslacker, Stella, Jane Doe, Anonymous, Chuck, Shadexxx, short, Drelufon, Ami Metallium, borktroll, peacekeeperchuck. To anyone I missed, I apologize and offer you my heartfelt thanks as well. You guys rock my socks! And as always, dedicated to my beautiful wife.

The next morning Ron awoke with a feeling of guilt and a headache that he only wished was the result of alcohol. At least Kim got home safely he mused, sitting up on his bed and running a hand through his sleep tussled hair in a vain attempt to smooth it. Though I could have done without the twenty something phone calls trying to explain that we'd really be good together…especially some of the more explicit ones after her parents went to sleep he shuddered and turned his gaze to the phone where he'd left it on the night stand but off the hook. It was truly amazing the difference a few days could make in someone's attitude, well that and seeing one's best friend suddenly in a light just shy of "Single White Female". He was suddenly very glad his father's allergies had kept rabbit off the list of potential pets. " And I usually know where Rufus is," he muttered, slinging his legs over the edge of the bed, " so no worries there." At the moment, Rufus was stretched out in the cradle of the phone, a small pillow placed into the depression where the earpiece normally sat. He'd decided to sleep there as a deterrent in case Ron lost the nerve to leave the phone off the hook and decided to talk to Kim again. " Good ole Rufus," he smiled at the still sleeping mole rat, " always has my back and doesn't expect anything in return….well maybe cheese" Taking care not to disturb his hairless friend, Ron crept out of the room and down stairs in search of food.

" Why, oh why, oh why did she have to develop feelings for me now?" He moaned entering the kitchen " I mean, I'm happy…I'm in love with a beautiful goddess of a woman who happens to love me too, and KP has to come along and tell me she wants us to pursue a relationship? Repeatedly?". He banged his head against the refrigerator door a few times in frustration before opening it and retrieving the milk. " She couldn't possibly just let me be over her and on with my life, could she? God no, someone not constantly fawning over little miss perfect, it'd be a sign of the apocalypse" he continued ranting as he grabbed a box of honey nut cheerios down from the top of the fridge. Two things occurred to him at that moment, lifting him out of his funk. The first was that he indeed was truly over Kim and had securely moved on with his life and into a wonderful, if unconventional and even a bit odd, relationship with Sheena; the other was that he was starting to sound like his love, especially when a certain red headed cheerleader was the topic of his thoughts. I even called her Kimmie last night he remembered with a tight grin, that had to throw her for a loop. As amusing as the realization of just how much Sheena's views were starting to rub off on him was, Ron knew that he needed to keep a tighter rein on them in the future. After all it wouldn't do to have her start keeping an even closer tab on his activities like she would if she suspected something was up. Not that my privacy seems to mean that much to her these days anyway he groused, pouring the cereal into a bowl and adding just a splash of milk. First thing after breakfast, I'm giving Wade a call and having him deactivate that damn tracking chip. Taking a spoonful of cereal he glanced at the clock on the microwave and saw that it was a little after noon. Maybe the whole being suspended for a week thing won't be so bad after all he considered, taking another bite I can catch up on my sleep, get in some serious video game time and see my girlfriend without having to worry about getting home in time for school. Man, I should have beaten Mankey months ago. The best part to his mind though, was the fact that his parents weren't due back from their second honeymoon until the next Monday, the same day he would be allowed to go back to school so they'd never have to know he'd been suspended. Could his luck get any better? A spoonful of milk alone made him glance into the bowl to discover he'd polished off the cereal without even realizing it. Well, waste not want not he thought, picking the bowl up and slurping down the rest of the milk. When he was finished he set the bowl into the sink and went back to the fridge and retrieved a small block of cheese. " Might as well wake Rufus up and put the phone back on the hook," he said to the empty room, " I mean it's the middle of the school day…I don't think Kim would really skip lunch or anything just to call me and tell me how she feels again…." The thought gave him pause. " Ok, maybe I'll wake him up but leave the phone off the hook anyway. Besides, I'm not exactly expecting any calls." The matter decided, he headed back upstairs to his room.

"Wakey, wakey buddy," Ron sing-songed, waving the piece of cheese over Rufus's still sleeping form. A second later, a paw reached up and snagged the cheese without Rufus even opening his eyes and a second later it was gone.

"Mmmm…morning," Rufus chirped, stretching and climbing out of the phone's cradle. It wasn't quite as nice as curling up on Ron's spare pillow, but it had been surprisingly comfortable none the less; he scampered over to the handset and was about to return it to its proper location when Ron lifted it from his paws.

"Maybe leave it off a little while longer Rufus," he said, setting it back on the nightstand, " I don't want to have to deal with Kim calling during lunch to tell me what she'd **really** like instead of the slop they call food." He shuddered, even after catching Kim and Josh in the act he'd never suspected just how dirty his best friend's mind could be. He walked over to the corner of the room where he'd dropped his clothes after coming in last night and rummaged around in the pile until he found his Kimmunicator. " Well better get this over with." He muttered, walking back to the bed and taking a seat before turning the small gadget on.

" Hey Ron, how's the suspension going?" Wade asked as the older blond boy's face appeared on his computer monitor, " And if you're calling to ask me to get you back into school, I can't do it. I mean, I can wipe your permanent records, no problem. But Barkin is another story entirely." The young super genius had a feeling that it wasn't the reason Ron had called, but the look on his friend's face at the suggestion that he actually wanted to be in school was priceless.

" No, it's ok. And don't worry about wiping the record. I mean, come on, I help save the world on a fairly regular basis, what college is going to hold one suspension in my senior year against me when I have saved the world on my application?" He smiled, granted he was considering getting out of the saving the world gig and trying to have a normal life, well as close to normal as he could ever come, but Wade didn't need to know that yet. " No, what I need you to do Wade," he took a deep breath, " is disable my tracking chip." He held up a hand where Wade could see it to forestall argument, " No buts, man. Kim is totally abusing the thing and I can't really afford to have her hunting me down whenever the mood strikes her." He decided that it would be best if the young man on the other end of the reception wasn't fully aware of just what moods seemed to be striking Kim recently.

Wade nodded sagely as someone of his still tender years could, " This wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that if she caught you at an inopportune moment, she'd literally hunt you down, would it?" He smirked. Ron could play his cards as close to the chest as he liked, but Wade was still a super genius, sometimes he felt the need to remind his friend of that fact.

Ron rubbed the back of his neck nervously, this was the second time that Wade had hinted that he knew more than he should, " Of course not," he lied unconvincingly, " This has nothing to do with that fact which is not a fact. It's just that a man needs his privacy, you know?" Wade just gave him a look that clearly said he wasn't buying Ron's excuse. " Alright, how much do you know, and what's it going to cost me to keep you quiet?" Ron sighed.

" Ron, Ron, Ron," Wade chided with a slight chuckle, " Do you really think so little of me that I'd resort to blackmail? I mean come on, there are so many better things that have come along over the years I could blackmail you about and haven't." The color drained from Ron's face, causing the boy genius to laugh out loud. " Seriously though," he managed when he finally had control of himself again, " this is too major to even think about blackmailing you over. Besides, you've got some serious choices you're going to have to make and soon, and you don't need any additional stress coming from me." There was a clicking of keys and Wade looked into the monitor once again, " Alright, against my better judgment, the tracking chip's been disabled." He paused, " Ron, I'm doing this because you're my friend. So I hope you'll listen to what I have to say for the same reason; I know Kim hurt you, seriously hurt you…but she's your friend too. You should seriously consider what you'd be giving up going down the path you're on now."

" Trust me Wade," Ron replied seriously, " I have, and I'll continue to think seriously about the whole thing. There's just one thing I've got to know…if you know as much as you're implying, why are you being so cool about this with me? I mean why didn't you tell Kim when you first suspected anything?"

The younger man smiled conspiratorially, " Because, between you and me Ron, if I were in your shoes, I can't honestly say that I wouldn't be tempted myself." He grinned, " Of course, if you ever mention that to anyone at all, I'll deny ever having said it." With that he killed the transmission.

Ron let the super genius's words sink in for a moment before shuddering violently " Oh, that is just sick and wrong. I so do not need to know that Wade thinks my girlfriend's hot!" He set the Kimmunicator down and looked around the room for something to do with his time. " You know Rufus," he mused aloud, " I could never feel where the chip was, but now that I know it's off I still feel like I've been freed somehow. I mean, it's amazing, I can go anywhere I want, do anything I want, and not have to worry about KP hunting me down." Of course there was only one place he wanted to be.

" Nothing to do here, might as well get dressed and go see if I can help repair some of the damage KP did to Sheena's place last night." Buoyed by the excitement of seeing his girlfriend again, Ron quickly got off the bed and began a search for decent clothes, finally settling on a dark green t-shirt and black jeans. Great he chuckled mentally, appraising his look in the mirror I'm in so deep I'm even starting to dress like her. Even so, he couldn't deny the fact that he liked the look and could only hope that she would as well…or at least not tease him too mercilessly over it. There was just one problem, the jeans lacked adequate pocket space for Rufus to join him.

As if reading his friend's mind, Rufus hopped down from the nightstand and scurried across the floor to Ron's book bag and began emptying it of school supplies, after all, there wasn't a need for textbooks, pens or paper when he wasn't going to be using them. All that junk would do is clutter up perfectly good space for a nap on the long journey to Sheena's place. Granted, he could offer to stay home and give Ron and his new lady some time together but he was still a little leery of Sheena's intentions. After all, it hadn't been too long ago that they'd been on opposite sides. Now, who knew? "Taa-daa," Rufus beamed, presenting Ron with the now empty book bag.

"Good thinking Rufus," Ron said as the rodent crawled into the book bag and zipped it shut from the inside. Ron hefted the bag and slung it over his shoulders, waiting for Rufus to settle down. Finally ready to head out, his gaze fell on the Kimmunicator. He knew that Wade could track his position by following its signal, but he couldn't bring himself to just leave the device laying on his bed either; after all, there could be a sudden break in the case with Junior and Dr. Bortel's mood roses and Kim might actually need his help. " Fat chance of that," he muttered, as he picked up the Kimmunicator and slipped it into the bottom pocket of the book bag anyway. Better safe than sorry, besides, if it wasn't an emergency, he didn't have to take any calls. Heading out of the room, Ron sighed heavily, wishing not for the first time, that his love life wasn't so complicated. Of course he mused, pausing to lock the front door, If it wasn't so complicated I'd have never realized just how wonderful a person was hiding beneath Shego's gruff and sarcastic exterior. Of course, he knew he'd be in for some pain if he ever let Sheena know just how sappy his thoughts of her were. Smiling, he hopped onto his beautifully sleek motorcycle, plopped on the helmet and took off through the town, barely paying attention to speed limits in his desire to put Middleton far behind him.

Of course he couldn't possibly be so lucky as to actually make it to Sheena's home without incident. He was about halfway there, when his book bag began to vibrate violently on his back, forcing him to pull over to the side of the road and figure out just what the hell was going on. It didn't take long to discover the source of the vibrations, as he pulled the Kimmunicator from the bottom pocket of his book bag with a groan. " Man, I didn't even know this thing had a vibrate setting," he groaned, flipping it on, " It had better be good Wade," he said, annoyance dripping from every word.

" Sorry to interrupt your plans Ron," the boy genius apologized, " But we've got trouble at the First National Bank of Middleton. Dr. Drakken and…uh…Shego." He winced, not knowing how Ron would take the news. " Kim's already on her way, I'll feed you the video from the surveillance cameras." There was a flurry of keystrokes before Wade's face was replaced by the interior of the First National Bank of Middleton. Ron could clearly see Dr. Drakken standing in the middle of the shot, probably gloating as usual, though there was no sound, while Shego kept the security forces at bay with blasts of plasma, strangely there was neither hide nor hair of Drakken's usual dopey henchmen. With the two main villains, if Drakken could properly be counted as a main villain, occupied, who was doing the actual robbing of the bank? A flash of movement at the edge of the video's screen caught his eye and a small his escaped his mouth, syntho-drones.

Damn it Ron swore mentally, Couldn't possibly be just his lard assed lackeys…noo… he had to bring in syntho-drones. Man, I'm going to get syntho-goo all over by the time this is done. Despite his inner tirade, he was already turning the bike around and pouring on the speed back towards Middleton. " Alright Wade, I've got my bike so I don't need you to call in any favors for me but even with going…" he glanced down at the speedometer, eyes widening, " Way to fast to even remotely begin to be considered safe, I'm not sure I'll make it in time to be of any real help. Think you can…oh…I dunno…rig it so that I manage to catch every green light between here and the bank and maybe convince the Middleton police that there is some emergency somewhere that isn't me breaking every land speed record ever set?"

" Way ahead of you Ron," the younger man answered smirking, " Though most of the police are already making their way to the problem at the bank, not that they'll actually be able to do anything useful, but the lights are set for you. I can't do much about traffic already on the road though, so you're on your own there."

" Thanks Wade," Ron said, " Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to turn this off so I can put my full attention…and both hands, back to the task of driving without getting myself killed." With that he clicked off the transmission and carefully worked the Kimmunicator into a pants pocket. " Hang on back there Rufus," Ron yelled over the roar of the bike's engine as he pressed it to move even faster towards his destination. Oh, this is going to be ….interesting He thought as the scenery flew by.

Amazingly he made it to the bank without hitting or being hit by anyone, though there was that…near incident when he'd spotted Bonnie crossing the street. Hey, I didn't actually hit her he reasoned just gave her a little bit of a scare, that's all Fortunately, his helmet did a pretty good job of disguising his identity, but even if it hadn't, the look of momentary terror on the brunette snob's face would have been worth it. " Careful Ron," he muttered to himself, pulling his bike to a stop amongst the assembled police cars outside of the building, " Once you start down the dark path forever will it dominate your destiny." Of course that thought naturally lead to thoughts of Sheena in full dominatrix gear, which kept Ron from noticing the rather portly police officer approaching him.

" Excuse me," the officer started, " but due to an emergency inside, this branch of the bank is not currently open to the public. Might I suggest you try the branch down on seventh street?" He quickly corrected himself when Ron pulled off his helmet, " Oh, Mr. Stoppable, it's you. I didn't know you had a motorcycle. I'm glad you're here, Ms. Possible's inside and she could use all the help she can get I'd say…there've been some awful crashing sounds coming from inside for the past fifteen minutes or so."

Ron smiled his trade mark dopey grin, masking his disdain for the do nothing Middleton police force. What the hell do our tax dollars go towards anyway? Shiny new badges? Sure as hell doesn't seem to go towards the hiring of competent police.

" No fear Officer Hobble, the Ron dog came to play." Ron said, patting the rotund cop on the shoulder as he climbed off of the motorcycle. "Rufus, grappling hook if you don't mind." No response. " Rufus?" Ron carefully removed his back pack and peered inside only to find a very green looking mole rat curled up and clutching his stomach next to the grappling hook. " Heh, guess I was going a little fast there, huh buddy?" Ron whispered apologetically.

" Uh-huh, uh-huh, too fast" Rufus agreed pitifully, managing to look up at Ron for a moment before curling back into a ball. It looked like the mole rat would be sitting this one out.

" Officer Hobble, Rufus isn't feeling too well, I guess the whole back pack carrying system wasn't the greatest plan I've ever had. Anyway, would you mind keeping an eye on him while I go in and kick some butt? Thanks." Ron reached into the book bag and retrieved the grappling gun before passing the bag to the confused police officer. Turning to face the bank, Ron took aim at the roof and fired, miraculously managing not to lose his pants in the process. Alright! He crowed mentally as the line grew taut and he squeezed the trigger to begin his ascent to the rooftop I kept the pants…jeans are so the way to go from now on. Landing quietly on the roof, Ron made his way over to a broken skylight and peered down into the building. He could clearly see Kim, decked out in full mission mode, doing her best to avoid the blows of not one, not two, but three syntho-drones that were moving with a grace and speed that clearly rivaled her own. Tearing his eyes away from the battle, he continued scanning the bank for any signs of Dr. Drakken or Shego; they weren't hard to find. Drakken was still at the center of the room, almost directly below the skylight, and from the looks of his exaggerated gesturing, still going on about the brilliance of his scheme, while Shego on the other hand, was sitting on a table, admiring the jewelry she'd liberated from the bank's safety deposit boxes, next to her sat a large canvas bag with a green dollar sign on it, clearly identifying the contents. " Geez, any more clichéd and you'd think this was a cartoon," Ron muttered, " Then again, it would explain why Dr. Drakken fails so badly so often…maybe he gets his equipment from ACME." A crash from below reminded him that this wasn't the time to sit around and make idle, if adroit, observations. " Alright, first things first." He said, taking a deep breath before leaping through the shattered skylight with a mighty " Boo-yah!" and landing, feet first, on top of Dr. Drakken. An act that earned him immediate applause from the captive bank tellers and cowering patrons as it had the decidedly welcome effect of shutting the blue skinned megalomaniac up. Of course, this also got the attention of the room's combatants and Shego, who quickly hid a warm smile with a sneer. Oh yea, my love life's not too complicated, not at all Ron mused, climbing off of Drakken's body.

" Ah…Ron, little help here?" Kim called from across the room, flipping out of the way of yet another barrage of attacks. Her long red hair was matted down with sweat, and she was clearly being worn down from having to dodge three attackers with her level of prowess; in that moment she almost looked human, far from the infallible being who claimed to be able to do anything, and often lived up to the claim.

" I'm coming KP," He replied, snagging a shattered table leg from the floor and beginning in her direction. " Oh man, this is not going to be pretty." He moaned, not relishing the thought of having to spear a syntho-drone.

" Ya got that right sidekick," came Shego's voice as she landed directly in front of him, hands aflame with green plasma, " In fact I think you're going to end up with some rather ugly bruises, maybe even a contusion or two." A green booted foot came up quickly and knocked the impromptu spear from Ron's hands. Despite the light banter, it was obvious that her heart wasn't into the idea of fighting him.

Ron backed away slowly, his arms raising into defensive positions as he considered his options. There weren't that many to choose from: one, he could do the expected thing and try and run away, "accidentally" taking out a syntho-drone or two if he got the opportunity; two, he could actually fight Shego and see just how far out of his league she really was, and then make it up to her later; or three, try to bluff her into taking off with the money and the unconscious Dr. Drakken. Of all his options, number two seemed the most appealing. " Bring it," he breathed, settling into a low fighting stance and letting his focus narrow to the woman in front of him.

Shego's emerald eyes widened in disbelief for a moment. He's actually challenging me? she marveled, it was definitely unexpected, and surprisingly intriguing Guess I can patch him up later on She grinned and exploded into action, sending a sharp kick at his head, or rather where his head should have been. Instead she found her foot connecting with empty space. Ok, so he's a little faster than I thought, good. Before she could bring her foot back to the ground, she found out just how fast, as her supporting leg was swept out from under her, sending her unceremoniously onto her butt to stare at a grinning Ron as he straightened up.

" Ooh, that's one point for the Ron dog while Shego has yet to score," He taunted, running a hand smoothly through his hair. However he knew the element of surprise wouldn't keep his love down for long and quickly took off, his eyes scanning the area for his patented synth-drone staking table leg. " Ok," he muttered, " So I don't have a patent on it yet, but man if I could convince GJ of the usefulness of table legs as offensive weaponry I'm sure they'd be willing to part with a little cash." He'd just spotted the sharp piece of wood, conveniently close to where Kim was fighting for her life when a pair of plasma blasts caught him squarely in the back and knocked him into the wall.

" So, I guess the score's all tied up now, isn't it?" Shego mocked half-heartedly as she walked up behind Ron's still form. Those jeans show his ass really nicely a small part of her mind insisted on informing her before she slapped it back into place. This was definitely not the time to let herself be distracted by her hormones. Right, just my hormones…nothing more than hormones She reminded herself, reaching out to peel him off of the wall " It was a nice try Stoppable," Shego admitted, " You get an A for effort, but you still aren't quite in my.." Her boasting was cut of as the air was expelled forcibly from her lungs by Ron's fist connecting with her chest as he turned to face her.

Ron winced slightly, ignoring the part of his mind chastising him for such a dirty trick. Hey, she nailed me in the back he reasoned playing possum is tame by comparison. Besides, hitting the wall had been far from an enjoyable experience; Ron briefly reached up and wiped a trail of blood from his throbbing lower lip. Man, the kiss and make up phase of fighting with Sheena is going to hurt almost as much as the actual fighting. He quickly pushed the thought, enjoyable as it was, from his mind and grabbed Shego's right arm before flipping her over his shoulder and into the floor, taking care to keep her head from smacking it too solidly. " I'm coming Kim," he shouted, racing away from his temporarily downed opponent and scooping his wooden spear from the bank floor. Arms extended, he leapt towards the nearest syntho-drone and shoved the piece of wood through its back and out the front. " And that," he said smugly, pulling the weapon free, " is how we take care of things in my town." Unfortunately, nothing happened. " Ah…Kim.." Ron stammered as the syntho-drones turned their attention from his cornered friend to the new threat " Why isn't he doing an impression of the Wicked Witch of the West right now?"

" I…I don't know…" She responded, her eyes widening in shock and fear as she watched her best friend through the hole he had made in the syntho-drone. " It's almost like they can heal…if you can keep them busy I'll see if Wade can offer any suggestions" She added whipping out her Kimmunicator and sending a silent prayer heavenward as the three automatons began converging on Ron that he would be alright for a little while on his own.

" Keep them busy, right," He muttered nervously, baring the syntho-goo covered table leg in front of him like a sword as he backed away warily. " Say, isn't this where you go it's only a flesh wound?" He taunted the wounded syntho-drone nervously. There was no response, not that he'd actually expected one. " You know," he continued babbling away as he backed up, luck alone keeping him from stumbling over anything, " The whole hole through the chest look is in this year. Very slimming." The syntho-drones continued to press him back until he bumped into a wall. As one, the deadly machines raised their right arms, aiming directly at Ron as nozzles rose from their forearms. " Oh, not good." Ron muttered. Before he could even wonder what the purpose of the nozzles was, he had his answer as three columns of flame made their way towards him. Years as the Mad Dog, however, saved his life for once instead of simply annoying everyone around him, as he dove, almost gracefully, beneath the incoming flame and slid between the legs of the syntho-drone directly in front of him and rising back to his feet behind the robots, amazingly still in possession of his make-shift spear. " Alright," He crowed, " Out of the fire and back into the frying pan!" His celebration was cut short as his eyes came to rest on Shego standing directly in front of him, both hands ablaze with plasma.

" Cute," She sneered, narrowing her emerald eyes dangerously, " though I was thinking more "rock and a hard place" Stoppable." Her lips twitched into a smirk and allowed her eyes to travel down his lean frame, lingering for a split second on the front of his jeans. Ok, not the time or place to be thinking about just how hard Stoppable can get Shego reminded herself firmly. " Stand down," She ordered the syntho-drones without sparing them so much as a glance, " He's mine."

Ron gulped audibly in the sudden silence and resisted the urge to look about for KP. Yea, that's all I need. Piss Sheena off even more by looking for another woman. I'd be lucky if she stopped at just killing me. At least her command had taken care of one problem; he still didn't have a clue as to how to permanently take care of the syntho-drones but that could wait. " I'm yours?" He asked, throwing as much incredulity as he could into the question, " Like you could even handle me." Before he'd finished speaking, Ron threw himself head first at Shego's midsection, tackling her to the bank floor, the shock of the attack causing her to fire her plasma harmlessly past him into the ceiling.

" You have no idea how well I can handle you ," She whispered in a low almost purr, close to Ron's ear. " Come by my place later and I can show you." She grinned, enjoying the look of pure shock and embarrassment that spread across Ron's face at the suggestion. Before he could craft a response she tucked her legs under him and launched Ron over her head into the air. Coming to her feet, she winced. The plasma had taken out two large chunks of the ceiling, which wouldn't be a problem if they hadn't crushed the heads of the only two uninjured syntho-drones, effectively taking them out of the fight. " Great," She muttered, eyeing the damaged syntho-drone critically, " Well I guess it could have been worse."

" SHEGO," came the aggrieved cry of Dr. Drakken, who had finally woken up from his little nap, " What have you done to my beautiful syntho-drones?"

" Me and my big mouth," she groaned, slapping her hand over her eyes, " He couldn't possibly have woken up at any point in time where he'd be useful." She dropped her hand and was preparing to deliver a scathing retort to the not so good Doctor when she noticed little miss perfect had decided to rejoin the fight. " Ugh, this just keeps getting better and better," She sighed. Before Possible was close enough to launch an attack, Shego backflipped to Dr. Drakken's side, reaching out to grab the bag of cash. " Yo, hole-y man, catch up or get left behind." She called to the remaining syntho-drone, who was still observing her earlier order to stand down.

The automaton started into motion and Dr. Drakken removed a small remote control from his pocket, calling his hovercraft to the top of the bank. A retrieval platform lowered through the broken skylight and the two villains and injured drone rushed onto it. " Kim Possible, you think you're all that, but you're not!" Drakken cried triumphantly as the platform hoisted the trio of evil-doers to safety. Just seconds before the platform completely cleared the hole in the skylight, he caught a flash of familiar blond hair. Rationally, he knew that it was just the buffoon, though he couldn't ever remember seeing the buffoon in green and black. In fact he almost looked like a blond Shego.Well, a blond, male, Shego. As fate would have it, the dim bulb in his brain flashed briefly and he made an astounding connection. Eyes wide in shock, Drakken turned to stare at Shego, who was busily working the controls of the hovercraft to pilot them back to the lair. " YOU'RE SHACKING UP WITH THE BUFFOON!" he screamed. It certainly explained a lot…like why every one of his brilliant, fool proof plans had been handily foiled.

Shego winced and set the auto-pilot. " Easy there sport. Before you blow a gasket, let me explain." Inwardly, she groaned. She hadn't planned on letting Dr. D in on her plan quite so soon, if ever. Now she'd have to step things up a bit. After all, he wasn't exactly the most patient person in the world when it came to getting what he wanted. " You see, it's like this…" She placated, holding her hands out towards the irate evil genius as the hovercraft sped towards its destination.

Back inside the First National Bank of Middleton, Kim Possible was sorely tempted to swear, but managed to bite her tongue. It was bad enough that Drakken and Shego had managed to escape with the cash, the news media wasn't exactly kind when she didn't succeed in every mission and it wouldn't help if she tarnished her reputation even further by having every other word out of her mouth get censored. " At least she didn't get the jewels from the lock boxes," Kim sighed, pasting on a relieved smile. " Hell, who am I kidding, I'm just lucky that Ron showed up when he did. Otherwise things could have been much, much worse." Her smile grew; of course Ron had shown up in the nick of time, he was her dashing white knight, how could it be any other way? A groan caught her ear and she turned to see Ron pushing himself up off of the floor, and she quickly primped, smoothing her hair back into place before he could see her.

" Oh man," Ron said, coming to his feet and brushing plaster dust off of his clothes, " I feel like…ok…so there isn't anything bad enough that I can think of to describe how I feel. Please tell me that means we won, cause it would really suck if I felt this bad and we didn't win." He glanced around the bank and saw no sign of Dr. Drakken or Shego…or the bank's money. On the plus side, two of the three syntho-drones were laid out on the floor, their heads considerably flatter.

" You ok Ron?" Kim asked, heading towards him and running a critical eye over her best friend's body. His, very sexy body her mind piped up helpfully. It was all she could do to keep from blushing. " I mean aside from the horrendous outfit you're wearing. No offense but green and black really aren't your colors." Even if the tight jeans do look very nice on him Her mind supplied. Finally, her eyes came to rest on his face and she noticed the flow of blood from his lower lip. He's hurt! What was he thinking taking on Shego? I'd give him a piece of my mind if it hadn't been so brave of him. Maybe I should offer to kiss him all better.

" What?" Ron asked, not quite liking the way Kim was looking at him as she approached, " Oh yea, fine. Nothing that a little…ok…maybe a lot of R&R wouldn't take care of.." A gleam suddenly appeared in Kim's eyes at the mention of R&R and Ron immediately regretted his choice of words. Hmmmm…how do you tell your best friend that, no offense, but you'd rather spend your down time with her greatest nemesis? He wondered. Fortunately, Middleton's finest chose that moment to burst onto the scene, sparing Ron from having to worm his way out of a way awkward discussion.

" Mr. Stoppable, Miss Possible," Officer Hobble greeted with a smile as he made his way towards them, " I'm glad to see that you're both alright." He handed Ron his book bag, looking relieved to be free of his hairless charge. " Rufus seems to be alright as well, Mr. Stoppable. In fact, he perked right up not too long after you headed inside to help out and was none too pleased that I wouldn't let him head in after you." It didn't escape either teen's attention that Officer Hobble had a band-aid on his right hand now.

" He he, sorry about that," Ron said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, " He gets a little protective of me sometimes." It was all he could do to keep from breaking out into a full grin as he imagined Rufus taking a bite out of the portly, good for nothing cop. Leave it to Middleton's finest to come in after the bad guys have escaped he mused. It was almost enough to make him stop paying taxes….not that he actually had a job that taxed his income, but still if he had, he'd seriously consider not paying this year.

" And we're sorry we couldn't get the money back," Kim added, coming to a stop beside Ron and sliding an arm through his. " Don't worry though, we'll get them and bring back whatever we can." She winced, knowing that with the way Dr. Drakken spent money there wouldn't really be much to return to the bank, and once again fought the urge to swear like a sailor. " In fact, we'll get right on it after I take Ron to get patched up." Ok, so one little white lie couldn't hurt, could it? Besides, right now all she wanted to do was go home and crash. Well….maybe not just go home and crash, but there was no need for Officer Hobble to know her plans for spending some quality time with Ron.

Ron paled, " Actually, I'm not that injured KP." He smiled, gently disengaging her arm from his, " Why don't you give GJ a call and have them come pick up what's left of Dr. Drakken's syntho-drones? Maybe they can find out why stabbing them won't stop them anymore and I'll see if I can find any clues as to where Dr. Drakken and Shego might have holed up this time." Without waiting for a response, Ron bolted from the bank, heading for his motorcycle.

" What do you suppose that was about Miss Possible?" the portly police officer asked, taking off his hat and scratching his head in bemusement.

" Oh nothing." She sighed pulling out her Kimmunicator Fine, he wants to play hard to get, I can play. She thought But not for too long. " Hey Wade," she smiled, " Can you do me a favor and patch me through to Dr. Director? Please and thank you."


	11. All you have to do

Bad as She Wants Me to Be

Chapter 11: All you have to do

Author: RoguesKnight

Rating: M/MA…can language and adult content co-exist with pure fluff in the same chapter? Stay tuned true believers! (Apologies to Stan Lee)

Disclaimer: Kim, Ron, Shego, et al. are not my property. If they were I wouldn't be stuck working security from midnight til 8 am. Damn the fates!

Author's note: Yes I'm still alive and still writing! Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and encouraged me to update and sorry for the delay. Thanks to: Zaratan, Triaxx2, JPElles, shadexxx, seahawk, Harufu, momike, Devinel, campy, oblivionknight7,

MustangGT, GargoyleSama, The shadowless one, FAH3, Hash-Slinging Slasher-Hi, The PhantomHokage, The Infernal, Azant, Kitsune6, SM, conan98002, S-Chrome, The Halfa Wannabe,VentMonster, vega, Starlorn, AtomicFire, Merridian, BrianDarksoul, Vegeta666, spectre666, Chaseme720, GAP, Grad, peacekeeperchuck, Mr. Picky, Drelufon, Erin, J or The Blind, aaran924, Herald of Light, CajunBear73, Lokota-Jones, obliviondragon, and last but certainly not least, my lovely wife who puts up with my insanity and typing.

Shego lounged lazily in a comfortable, dark green arm chair in the common room of Dr. Drakken's lair, her slender legs draped over the arm and wondered idly if Drakken would notice if she fell asleep while he was ranting. After all she mused, not a little irritated, It's not like he's said anything new in the past half hour or so. Indeed the entire flight back to the lair had been a combination rant and interrogation about her relationship with Ron; as if it was really any of his business. A dark shadow fell over her delicate features and rousing herself from her thoughts, she glanced up to see Dr. Drakken glowering down at her, his fists resting prissily on his hips. " Can I help you," she asked, sarcasm dripping from every word.

Dr. Drakken's face darkened, almost reaching the color of an overly ripe blueberry and a vein began throbbing in his forehead. " Yes, you can explain yourself.," he fumed, " Starting with why I shouldn't fire you for sleeping with the enemy. God only knows how I've never noticed it before," he threw his hands in the air and once again began pacing the length of the room, " It's so obvious in hindsight, you've been sabotaging my brilliant plans lo these many years just to keep your relationship with the buffoon a dirty little secret! How else could you possibly explain defeat after humiliating defeat at the hands of a mere teenager?"

As the megalomaniac continued his ranting of the humiliating defeats he'd suffered through the years and the injustices they'd done to his name and standing in the evil community, Shego simply rolled her eyes and pressed her lips to a near invisible line to keep from pointing out the real reason Dr. D's plans so often failed was that they were simply whacked beyond belief. " Yo, Dr. D," She interjected into the first pause in Drakken's rant in what seemed like forever, " Let's get some things straight, as per my contract, my personal life is my business and mine alone, or do we need to bring up how a certain blue skinned someone thought pimping me out to finance his schemes would be a good idea?" She let the tiniest bit of venom slip into her voice and narrowed her eyes dangerously in the doctor's direction just to let him know she still wasn't completely over that particular plan. " But aside from that, I'm not shacking up with the buffoon. As I explained on the way back here from the bank, I'm just using him to drive a wedge between himself and Possible. Split the team, and who knows even one of your whacked plans might actually work." Shego fought the heat she felt creeping up her neck and into her cheeks; after all there was no need for Dr. Drakken to know just how much she was enjoying driving that wedge into place. Or that you confessed your love for Ron? a traitorous voice piped up at the back of her mind before it was ruthlessly squashed back into her subconscious. Sooner or later she was going to have to do something about that pesky little voice before it completely ruined her plan.

Dr. Drakken paused, eyeing Shego speculatively and rubbing his chin, " Ah yes…I must admit for a mere sidekick to a genius like myself it is an ambitious plan. After all, how could the buffoon possibly resist your womanly charms?" Was it his imagination or had the muscles in her arms just tensed, best continue before she decided it was time for "Drakken to go ouch". " Alright, I'll accept your claim," he held up his hands, " I'll even chalk Kim Possible's continued successes up to incredible beginner's luck instead of behind the scenes sedition on your part. However, I wish you had chosen to include me in your plan. Perhaps we could have pitted those meddlesome kids against each other had I been allowed to woo young miss Possible while you romanced the Buffoon. I can be quite charming you know." He ran a hand through the oil slick he called hair and flashed her what he considered his best suave grin.

It was all Shego could do to keep herself from projectile vomiting. Drakken and Kimmie? It was too horrible to contemplate. Oooh….my fee just went up to seventy-five percent of today's loot for that wonderful little mental image She shuddered, wrestling with the urge to knock Drakken into the next county for the comment I'm definitely going to need some therapy after that one…no sleep for me tonight. A smile slid over her face as she thought of just what kinds of therapy she could indulge in with sleep no longer an option. " Sorry Dr. D," she said with false enthusiasm, " it was really a spur of the moment decision."

Drakken actually drooped, " Ah, a lost chance I suppose, but no matter. Perhaps your wedge will be enough of a distraction to keep them from foiling my latest master plan. Feast your eyes on this!" He crowed, striding purposefully to the main computer terminal and pulling up a file. On the large screen an image of the moon appeared, with a ring of eight rocket engines encircling the equator, four aimed towards the earth and four pointing away from it. " Still think my plans are whacked Shego?" he asked smugly, obviously waiting for her to admit his brilliance.

To her credit, Shego managed to keep her utter disbelief and dismay off of her face Oh for the love of god she moaned silently again with the moon! One of these day's I'm going to get him into some nice Freudian psychoanalysis to see if we can unearth the root of his obsession with the moon. Pushing herself out of the chair, Shego wandered over to get a better look at the monitor. " So you're what, going to threaten to rip the moon in half? What part of that plan isn't whacked again?"

Drakken grinned evilly, for once actually sending a chill down Shego's spine, " Nothing so childish Shego. It's time to take our game to the next level. Those rockets you see around the moon's equator were once part of a government plan to save the earth in the event of a major asteroid heading our way." He depressed another key on the computer and the image changed to show the eight rockets, this time hauling a large net between them, intercepting a large asteroid before it could collide with the earth and blasting it back into the depths of space. " Apparently," Drakken continued with a droll smile, " One of those asteroid movies, Armageddon or Deep Impact or something panicked someone in the government into coming up with a sort of missile defense net to protect us from such a fate. Unfortunately, they couldn't come up with a net that would actually withstand the rigors of exiting our atmosphere, let alone actually contain a hunk of rock hurtling through space at thousands of miles per hour and the plan was mothballed; with the rockets conveniently being stored here at the Middleton Space Center."

Shego slapped a hand over her eyes, and counted to ten, partially to keep from laughing at the absurdity of the whole plan and partially to keep herself from beating Dr. D to a pulp for wasting her time. " And the fact that the government decided a plan involving these rockets was too stupid to work ensures **your** success how?" She asked, keeping her hand over her eyes.

" Because, Shego," he replied impatiently, " I'm not trying to catch anything with them. In fact, quite the opposite." Another key press, " I'll be using them to push, or pull. Depending on whether or not the governments of the world are willing to bow to my demands. Observe" Drakken stabbed yet another key on the computer and the images on the screen leaped to life, " If the world's leader's refuse to acknowledge me as their superior, I will simply order the four rockets aiming the moon at Earth to push it closer by a few thousand miles. The results will, of course, be catastrophic…the shipping and fishing industries, for example will be completely ruined as the tide loses it's predictability, dogs will howl almost non-stop in suburban neighborhoods…"

A decidedly uneasy feeling settled into the pit of Shego's stomach, " And maybe millions of people along coasts will be killed," she interjected hotly, " or at least left homeless." There was no way he could seriously consider going through with his insane plan. Twisted though he may be, Dr. Drakken had somehow avoided killing anyone so far in the pursuit of world domination, he wouldn't start now, would he? Oh what am I worried about? She wondered, trying unsuccessfully to quiet her unease, It's not like any of his other plans have ever worked. Unfortunately, the reminder did little to calm her anxieties.

Dr. Drakken paused, seemed to consider her words, and grinned, " You forget, Shego, I am a very bad man. It's time the world was reminded of that fact." The grin faded and he shrugged, " Besides, once they recognize the brilliance of my plan and the potential for destruction, who would dare oppose me? You worry too much."

Shego sighed; it was really no use trying to reason with him when he latched onto one of his hair-brained schemes. " Ok," she spread her hands before her, trying to hold onto her quickly evaporating patience, " Let's say that hypothetically your plan had merit. How on Earth do you plan on getting those rockets in place? If it hasn't escaped your attention, that's a massive construction project and even with what we got from the bank today we couldn't afford the air tanks and a construction crew." A wave of relief washed over her, finally a weak spot in his plan.

" True," Drakken conceded, " Hence the syntho-drones. They don't need to breathe or rest and with the enhancements made possible by those super-conducting microchips you stole, even damage from micro-meteors won't pose too much of a threat to their ability to work. The plan is brilliant!" he reiterated.

" Sure, whatever," Shego replied, feigning her usual boredom, " Look, I'm gonna get going…thanks to the Princess, I've got some major home repairs to take care of. Why don't you get to work patching up Mr. Gaping Chest wound over there and I'll see you later." She pointed towards the syntho-drone that had been silently standing in a corner, and with a flip of her raven hair, Shego turned and strode briskly towards the door to the hangar and her waiting hovercraft.

" Yes, yes…that's exactly what I'll do, right after I build two more to replace the ones **you** destroyed at the bank today. That's coming out of your pay incidentally," Dr. Drakken yelled at her retreating back. When he got no response from his sidekick he sighed and ran a hand through his hair, " Honestly some people have no respect for evil genius at work." He muttered, approaching the syntho-drone, " As much as I hate to admit it, she does have a point. Let's go get you patched up, and then you can go make me a glass of cocoa moo while I work on building our forces." Without a word (big surprise) the damaged automaton followed the blue megalomaniac back towards the lab.

Almost an hour later Shego set her hovercraft down on her front lawn and engaged its cloaking device. Fuming over the fact that what should have been a half hour flight had taken the better part of an hour due to increased surveillance by Global Justice in light of their bank job earlier in the day, Shego failed to notice the fact that her front door had been replaced by a brand new one while she was gone until she tried to open it. " What the…" Before she could continue, the door swung open to reveal a very welcome sight, Ron Stoppable.

" Welcome home," he smiled, grabbing her wrist and pulling her through the doorway, then shut the door behind them and pinned his love against it with a passionate kiss. When air finally became an issue, Ron pulled away just enough to see her clearly, leaving his arms wrapped around her waist. " I've been waiting all day to do that," he admitted shyly, a hint of blush coloring his cheeks.

Shego smiled, fighting an answering blush on her pale cheeks, " Oh, you have, huh? Before or after you thought you'd try kicking my ass at the bank?" She teased, laughter sparkling in her emerald eyes, " And, not that I'm complaining, but how did you get in here?"

Ron's blush deepened, " In answer to your first question….I was thinking about kissing you before, after and during your little….ah…escapade….at the bank." Reluctantly, he released her and fished in his back pocket, " As for how I got in…here…" he pulled out a silver key and pressed it into her gloved palm. " I told Kim that I was going to try and track you and Drakken down…but really I had Wade call in a favor to have the door replaced that's your new key. I didn't want to just leave it under your floorboards like your old spare."

Shego stared down at the key in her hand, touched that he'd go to so much trouble just for her. Maybe you should make him a copy that annoying little voice in her head piped up happily. " Thanks" she said simply, ignoring the voice, " look…I'd kinda like to slip into something a little less work related at the moment, then we can chat. Ok?" She tried a smile and hoped he wouldn't push to find out what had happened to the cash from the robbery. They'd promised to shelve the shop talk when they were together, but it was still new territory.

Ron, nodded in understanding, " Sure Sheena, just don't get too comfortable. We're going out tonight." He smiled enigmatically and made a shooing motion toward her bedroom.

Waves of relief poured off of her He's not going to push it Sheena realized, a happy warmth spreading through her chest at the thought as she automatically headed in the direction of her bedroom This relationship just might work out after all. She was halfway to her room when another thought struck her What's he mean we're going out tonight? She was almost tempted to turn back and get the answer to that question by any means necessary but simply shrugged, " Well it has been….ok…forever since I've been on a real "date"" she muttered, " Who knows, it might even be fun?" A smile tugging at her lips, Sheena continued into her bedroom on her quest for more comfortable clothes Maybe something to drop his jaw in the process? That damn annoying voice piped up again helpfully. With a sigh of frustration, Sheena told that little voice in quite colorful terms what she thought it should do it itself.

In Sheena's living room, Ron sat on her green leather sofa, gingerly pressing his fingers to his lower lip; it still was a little sore from being split during the confrontation at the bank but he smiled anyway, a little pain was well worth kissing Sheena. " You're in trouble Stoppable," he murmured to himself, glancing down at the two hand sized scorch marks on the couch, it didn't take a genius to figure out the cause, " Granted, it's not like you helped her escape or anything…but the law still wouldn't look too favorably on his knowing where a wanted fugitive was and not turning her in.". He dropped his head back against the soft material, completely understanding the anger and frustration that must have caused Sheena to damage her couch. If only things were different He mused absently Of course, if things were different, she probably wouldn't be interested in me…oh well…when life gives you lemons…yadda…yadda…yadda Which, in fact, was the point of taking Sheena out tonight. It had taken some serious thinking, and he'd had to pick up some more Bueno Nacho to bribe Rufus into staying home, but he'd come up with a plan to give Sheena an almost normal date night…well as close to normal as he'd ever come when it came to their relationship anyway. " Oh well…who knows…maybe she'll have fun without resorting to violence for once." He said to the ceiling, unaware that the object of his thoughts had returned to the living room and was leaning against the doorframe that lead to the front door and hall.

" Stranger things have happened," Sheena agreed, smirking as Ron nearly jumped a foot into the air. " Of course," She added, the smirk transitioning to a seductive smile, " If violence does come into play, I'll just have to take time to nurse you back to health." The look in her eyes clearly suggested just what that therapy would entail more eloquently than words ever could..

Ron gulped, somehow managing not to pass out at the sight of his girlfriend. She was wearing a pair of black jeans that hugged her form so tightly he was tempted to ask if she'd just painted them on, and a pale green spaghetti strap tank top, low cut enough to show off a fair amount of cleavage. Whatever I did in a past life to deserve this he wondered as his vocal chords struggled to work I am **definitely** going to have to figure out how to do it again. After about five minutes of silent, not quite slack jawed staring, his voice decided to make a reappearance, " Ready to go?" he asked as coolly as possible as he pushed himself up from the couch. He might have pulled it off too, had his voice not decided to crack at that precise moment. Oh, the fates were cruel indeed.

Sheena smiled, doing her best to ignore the sudden herd of butterflies doing the cha-cha in her stomach. Oh get a grip She commanded herself You commit crimes for a living, one little date is nothing to get nervous over Unfortunately for her, the butterflies refused to listen. " Whenever you are," she answered, a slight blush coloring her pale green cheeks, " I'm guessing you've stashed a rocket ship capable of interstellar flight somewhere around here that I haven't noticed? I mean I'm not exactly the least recognizable person in the world." Especially after this afternoon she thought a little guiltily. Not that she would have been able to talk Dr. Drakken into putting his plan on hold for the sake of her social life, but she hoped with all her heart that it didn't end up ruining whatever Ron had planned for the evening.

Ron laughed, " No, not quite," he admitted walking over to his love and dropping a quick kiss on her lips, " And don't be so down on yourself gorgeous. Besides, there are still places on this planet that people are so out of the loop that they wouldn't recognize you." Before she could argue the point, Ron grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the house and onto the front porch. " Wait here," he smiled, " Oh, and if you happen to have an extra motorcycle helmet laying around anywhere you might want to grab it." With that, he took off around the side of the house.

Sheena watched him go with a longing smile, wondering just what in the world Ron had up his sleeve and pulled a small remote from her pocket to deactivate her hovercraft's cloaking device and lower the boarding ramp. Whatever Ron had in mind for their date, she had a feeling that she was genuinely going to enjoy herself. Years of life as a professional criminal had trained her to be both quick and quiet, skills she called upon now as she dashed into her ship, retrieved a green motorcycle helmet from a storage locker and raced back to the same spot Ron had left her in on the porch. By the time he'd pushed his bike out from behind the house, she'd even re-cloaked the ship. " Took you long enough," She smirked, pretending to examine the nails on her right hand, holding the helmet easily in her left, " I was starting to wonder if you'd gotten lost."

Ron smiled, shaking his head in amusement, " Yea, yea…coming?" he asked, pulling his own helmet on and kicking the motorcycle to life. He got his answer a moment later when Sheena locked her house and vaulted from the front porch onto the seat behind him in a single leap. " Show off" he muttered, knowing full well that she couldn't hear the comment over the roar of the engine. Ron waited until Sheena's slender arms slipped around his chest, pressing her tightly against him, before gunning the engine and heading for the road. Unfortunately for the lovers, the sound of the engine made talking on their trip a non-issue, and Ron had to keep his eyes on the road to avoid hitting anything, he was distracted enough just by how tightly Sheena was holding on to him as it was. Had either of them thought to look behind them, they might have noticed an all too familiar figure following them in a little red corvette, a look of shock and outrage clearly written on their face.

Three and a half hours later, Ron and Sheena arrived at their location. " You've got to be kidding be," Sheena said as she pulled off her helmet and ran her fingers through her raven locks, disbelief clearly coloring her voice as she stared at the entrance to J.P. Baerymoore's Pizza Party-torium. " A kid's restaurant?"

Ron just laughed, he'd had a feeling her reaction would be somewhere along those lines, " No, not just a kid's restaurant," he corrected, climbing off the motorcycle and offering his love a hand, " THE kid's restaurant. Not that it looks like we'll have to worry about too many munchkins," he added glancing around the nearly deserted parking lot, " Besides, Kim avoids this whole chain like the plague and no one in their right mind would think that you'd ever go to a kid's restaurant in Upperton of all places."

" Good thing no one's ever accused you of being in your right mind," Sheena teased, a small smile playing across her lips. As much as she hated to admit it, Ron had a pretty good point, and besides it was hard to be too upset at his choice of venue when he was so obviously excited about it. Doing her best to keep her reservations to herself, Sheena followed her almost bouncing with joy boyfriend to the restaurant's entrance Here goes nothing She steeled herself as Ron opened the door and the stench of burnt cheese assaulted her nostrils.

" Ahhhhhhh!" Ron sighed happily, holding the door open and ushering his love in ahead of him, " Is there any better smell known to man?"

Sheena paled, well more than she was naturally, and turned to glare daggers in his direction, " Listen and listen good Stoppable, if you ever, and I do mean ever, decide to get me perfume and I end up smelling like that" She waved a hand to indicate the restaurant, " I swear to you, no one will ever find your remains." Taking in the shocked and slightly frightened expression on the young man's face, she headed for the counter and the overly perky teenage girl waiting there. God, I really hope that smile on her face isn't genuine She thought, a note of dread crawling into her consciousness.

Ron seemed to have cheered up once more by the time he reached the counter, all evidence of being cowed by Sheena's threat hidden behind a wall of bravado. " Good evening Miss," he greeted the cashier/hostess, " We'd like your largest pepperoni pizza, twenty dollars in game tokens, and a cozy little booth for two in your non-smoking section." If his demeanor seemed odd, the cashier/hostess didn't say anything about it as she rang them up and dropped a bag of tokens into Ron's hand before leading them to a booth that appeared to be no different than any of the others and informing them that their pizza would be out shortly. " So, what do you think?" Ron asked as the younger woman walked away to greet the next patrons.

A million responses flew through Sheena's mind, most of them hurtful or otherwise inappropriate, and she let her gaze drift over the restaurant as she frantically sought an answer that wouldn't offend Ron since he'd obviously taken great pains to share something he treasured with her. She realized with a start that it really wasn't so bad, there were few small children around and the ones that were present were actually behaving themselves and not tearing all over the place like wild little monkeys Oh…I'd better not share that with Ron She thought, allowing a small smile to play over her lips He'd be scared of kids for the rest of his life Kids…she quickly pushed those thoughts aside and brought her gaze back to her date. " I think…." She hedged, letting him dangle just a little bit longer, " I'm going to get more tickets than you at the whack-a-mole" She finished with a grin, deftly swiping the bag of tokens from the table and running towards the game, careful not to mow any small children down in the process.

" Hey!" Ron shouted after her fleeing form, popping himself out of the booth and giving chase, a rather dopey grin plastered on his face. She doesn't hate it! I rock hard! he congratulated himself silently. " I'll have you know that I'm a master whacker" he said when he finally reached the game and picked up a mallet. A moment later the words registered in his mind and he blushed a deep crimson under Sheena's amused gaze.

" I'm sure you are Ron," She chuckled darkly as she bent over and slipped two tokens into the game, " And if I find out that you're thinking of anyone other than me while practicing your craft, oh venerable master, you're going to envy these moles." Almost more quickly than the eye could follow, she deftly nailed two of the plastic rodents. There were no more words as the two young lovers concentrated on outdoing each other at the game. True to her boast, Sheena managed not only to earn more tickets from the machine than Ron did, but she had set a new high score for the game as well. " You know "master"," She teased, waving her string of tickets triumphantly over her head, " I could teach you a thing or two when it comes to whacking." The look on Ron's face was priceless and Sheena laughed, grabbing his hand and pulling him on to the next game before he had recovered enough to think of a come back. What do you know She mused, I'm not totally hating this like I thought I would. Must be the company.

As Sheena dragged him towards the Skee ball set-up, Ron felt the first twinges of worry work their way into his consciousness. He'd planned on impressing her with his amazing gaming prowess…now it looked like he'd have to pull out every trick he knew and maybe even make some up on the fly if he even wanted to compete. Just my luck to get involved with someone even more competitive than Kim He groused, watching as Sheena's first ball went easily into the one hundred point cup.

The night wore on in much the same vein, mostly with gaming victories for Sheena on the games of skill, though Ron did manage to pull in a few on the straight out video games, causing Sheena to fall back on the stand-by excuse that her poor performance was the controller's fault. Between games, or whenever they needed a break from the stiff competition, they would wander back to their booth and snag a piece of pizza or two. Pizza, Sheena was reluctantly forced to admit, that wasn't actually bad or obviously burned anywhere despite the pervasive burnt cheese aroma. Sadly, all good things must come to an end and before they knew it, an announcement was being made that the restaurant would be closing in ten minutes and for anyone interested in redeeming their tickets to make their way to the prize counter. " You know," Ron said, carefully wiping his mouth with a napkin and setting it on the now empty pizza tray, " most of the stuff there is junk…but we do have all of these tickets…want to see if there's anything worthwhile?"

Sheena smiled, " Sure…I guess there's no harm in looking at least." In truth, she'd had her eye on a cheesy looking plastic ring with a flashing LED light in place of a jewel all night. Sure it was silly, but it seemed to fit the night perfectly, granted, at a twenty-five ticket price it was grossly overpriced but then again, when would she need the ridiculous pieces of paper again? Besides, she and Ron had won one hundred and fifty of the damn things. " I'll meet you over there," she said, pushing her way out of the booth and heading over to the prize counter.

Ron couldn't believe how free and happy Sheena looked, her sheer exuberance throughout the night had been contagious and he couldn't help but wonder what he'd done to unearth such childlike joy in her. " Course it could probably have something to do with never having been here before in her life and still kicking my ass nine times out of ten," He muttered, clearing the table and setting the tray on top of a nearby trash can. Still, if that's what it took to bring out this side of her, it was well worth the price. " See something you like?" He asked, sneaking up behind her at the counter and actually making her jump with a squeak. Must not laugh he commanded himself Laughter is a quick road to the ER

" It's silly…" Sheena blushed once she'd recovered, " but…." She pointed to the LED ring, her blush deepening.

Ron grinned, she was right, it was silly, but then he'd been eyeing the twenty-five ticket bottle of bubble solution next to it, so he had no room to complain. " Of course it is," he agreed gamely, " but that's the point, isn't it?" It was their turn to step up to the counter. " I'd like the bubble solution on the middle shelf, in a green bottle if possible," Ron told the attendant, " and we'll take one of those nifty flashy rings right next to it for the lady." He added, tearing off fifty tickets and handing them to the tired looking young teen.

" Whatever," the attendant said, taking the tickets and quickly plopping the prizes up on the counter.

" Here you go," Ron grinned, grabbing Sheena's hand and slipping the ring onto her ring finger before she could object or protest that she could do it herself. It was only after noticing a shocked and longing look in her emerald eyes that he realized he'd put the ring on her left hand. Ooohh boy he thought, trying to keep as calm as he could This isn't too awkward. Before he could think of anything to say, he was saved by a sudden crack of thunder. Glancing out the nearest window, all he could see was a wall of water pouring onto the ground. " Look, why don't you wait while I go get the bike and bring it around to the curb?" he placed the remaining tickets in her hand "There's no need for both of us to get any more soaked than we absolutely have to." Without giving her time to answer, he took off for the door.

Not that Sheena was actively paying attention at the moment anyway. She was vaguely aware that it'd started to really pour if the sound of the rain on the roof was any indication, but her gaze was fixated on the ring on her hand. If only… before the thought could go any further, she ruthlessly quashed it. Yes, if life were different, maybe it wouldn't be just a cheap plastic ring he'd put on her finger, but wishing things were different didn't make them so. " It was just an accident" she told herself firmly, " He was just being silly and grabbed the wrong hand…it didn't mean anything." Unfortunately that didn't stop her heart from aching with the wish that he had meant something by it. She was pulled from her musings by a rather plaintive request of " Kitty! Mommy, kitty!"

Turning to the sound of the request, Sheena caught sight of a small girl, not more than two years old with big green eyes and mousy brown hair pulled into pig-tails, holding onto the hand of a tired looking older woman with one hand and pointing to a black an white stuffed cat on the top shelf of the prize counter with the other. The older woman met Sheena's eyes with a small smile and turned her attention to her daughter " We don't have enough tickets sweetie…but look, you can get some candy down here, see…five tickets…would you like some candy Heather?"

" Not candy," the toddler said defiantly, her big green eyes beginning to water, " Kitty!" With that, she stuck her free thumb into her mouth, clearly indicating in her own small way that the conversation was over.

Sheena felt something tug at her heart watching the interplay between mother and daughter, and surreptitiously stole a glance at the price of the stuffed cat and rolled her eyes when she saw that it was one hundred tickets. Please she thought, annoyed at the ridiculous pricing Like it costs them even a dollar to make the thing. She cleared her throat, catching the mother's attention, " She really seems to want that cat," Sheena observed drily.

" Oh yes," the other woman replied, smiling weakly, " She loves cats, unfortunately she can only have stuffed ones because she's allergic to real ones." She turned her attention to her daughter again briefly, " Sweetheart, you have stuffed kitties at home…we'll see them in a little bit…ok.?" If the toddler's body language was any indication, she was not ok with that arrangement.

" Look," Sheena ventured, " I've got a hundred tickets left over, and to be honest, I've got everything I want," she waved her left hand, indicating the LED ring, " She's more than welcome to them. I'm certainly not going to have any use for them."

"I couldn't," The other woman began " It's…very kind of you to offer….but…"

" I insist," Sheena countered, waving the counter attendant over, and plopping the remaining tickets into his hand, " We'll take one of those little black and white cats for the little cutie here," she informed him, an edge to her voice suggesting that he'd better be polite about it.

" Sure," the attendant replied happily, proving that he wasn't too stupid to pick up on the menace in her tone, " Here you go sweetie,." He added, leaning over the counter to place the cat in the outstretched arm of the now beaming little girl.

" Kitty, kitty, kitty!" The little girl sang happily, twirling around in a tight circle, and bringing a smile to Sheena's face.

" Say thank you to the nice lady," the girl's mother admonished with a smile of her own.

Almost immediately, the little girl ceased her spinning and dizzily stumbled over to Sheena, wrapping her arms around Sheena's leg and beaming up at her, " Thank you!"

Sheena felt heat creeping up her neck and into her cheeks as she carefully disentangled the child from her leg, " You're welcome. Make sure that kitty is a good kitty for you," she instructed gently, giving her a gentle push back towards her mother and waving as the pair walked towards the front door. Out of the corner of her eye she caught sight of Ron, and from the knowing smile on his face she could tell that he'd witnessed almost the entire interchange. " Not a word," She growled, a deep blush blossoming across her cheeks, " I not sweet. I just didn't want to have to put up with a kid throwing a full-blown temper tantrum while I waited for you to come back. That's all."

" Of course," Ron agreed gamely, his grin widening as he handed her a helmet, " Wouldn't dream that you were going soft or anything." The glare she shot his way did nothing to lessen the grin, " It's really coming down out there," he said, a crack of thunder choosing that moment to emphasize his point, " and I don't know about you, but I don't really relish the thought of trying to drive back home in that on a motorcycle. I spotted a hotel on the way here that's pretty close, what do you think?"

Sheena smirked, " I think," she replied, slipping the helmet on and heading for the door with Ron in tow, " that I get the shower first when we get there."

" Couldn't we just share?" came Ron's somewhat plaintive and muffled reply as he plopped on his own helmet and followed her out into the storm. If she made any reply, it was drowned out by the sound of rain bouncing off of his helmet and yet another thunderclap from over head. If she's got a problem, you'll just have to convince her otherwise a little voice piped up in his head, sending a few suggestions as to how he might accomplish that feat. Beneath his helmet, Ron grinned, it may be more fun if she decided to argue. Climbing onto the drenched seat, he waited until he felt Sheena's arms slip into place around his chest before carefully kicking the motor into life and heading out. Unnoticed by either of the occupants of the motorcycle, a certain red corvette parked at the far end of the lot purred to life and slowly made its way out after them as they passed.

Ten minutes later, a thoroughly drenched and cold Ron and Sheena made their way into the lobby of the Upperton Marriott and approached the concierge desk, shivering and looking for all the world like a couple of drowned rats. " Good-evening…ah…Rose," Ron carefully cradled his helmet under an arm and reading the nametag on the jacket of the botoxed, blond woman behind the desk who was looking at the pair with undisguised disdain, " We'd like a room if you have any open. You may not believe it to look at us, but it's raining cats and dogs out there." He tried his most charming smile, and through some trick of fate managed to keep his teeth from chattering.

" I'm sorry," Rose replied snootily, " We aren't in the habit of renting out rooms by the hour here." Her cold blue eyes were firmly fixed on Sheena's rain logged tank top, " Might I suggest the No-Tell Motel down the road."

Beside him, Ron felt Sheena stiffen and reached out to give her hand a gentle squeeze as much to keep her from attacking the woman as to keep himself from doing the same. " I think I'd like to speak to your manager," he stated evenly, a hard edge creeping into his voice, " Now."

There must have been something dangerous that passed through Ron's normally happy-go-lucky brown eyes because it took Rose three attempts to successfully grab the phone behind the counter and she couldn't hide the quaver in her voice as she spoke, " Mr. Jones, could you please come to the concierge desk as soon as possible, there's a gentleman here who'd like to speak to you."

An awkward silence fell over the hotel lobby as the three awaited the arrival of the manager. Finally a portly man wearing a charcoal gray suit and wire rim glasses entered from a door behind the concierge desk. " Good evening," he said warmly, taking in Ron and Sheena on the other side of the desk, " I'm Mr. Jones, the manager on duty tonight, how may I help you?"

" I just wanted you to know that my fiancée and I were out celebrating our engagement this evening when we got caught in the rain," Ron raised Sheena's left hand, letting the two behind the desk get a quick glimpse of her ring before kissing her hand and lowering it again. Thankfully he managed to avoid pressing the "stone" and setting off the LED light. " And we were looking for a room for the evening," he continued, glaring at Rose for a fraction of a second, " however, someone, seems to believe my fiancée is nothing more than a prostitute. So, I'd just like you to know that we're officially crossing your hotel off the list of potential places to get our business on our honeymoon and furthermore, we're going to spread the word to our friends and ask them to do the same. Just thought you'd like to know that." Without another word, he turned and headed back towards the entrance, a speechless Sheena following him in stunned silence.

They were stopped just before they reached the door again by a slightly out of breath Mr. Jones, who'd obviously run from behind the counter to catch up with the couple. " My apologies sir," he said surprisingly sincerely, " I assure you the matter will be properly addressed," he sent a withering glare over his shoulder towards the concierge desk before continuing, " Let us make it up to you. I believe the honeymoon suite is currently unoccupied. Perhaps you'd change your mind after seeing how lovely the view is from there this evening…on the house of course."

Ron turned to regard Sheena thoughtfully, carefully keeping his face neutral. " What do you think sweetie? I mean it's still coming down pretty hard out there, do you want to try and find that….what did she call it? Oh yea, No-Tell Motel. Or would you like to take Mr. Jones up on his very generous offer?"

" Well, it does seem like a very nice hotel from what we've seen so far," Sheena conceded, " Architecturally speaking anyway." She paused, pursing her lips and placing a slender finger against them as if seriously thinking it over before turning to Mr. Jones and favoring him with a brilliant smile, " We'll accept your offer Mr. Jones," She said pleasantly, " I'm sure the vast majority of your staff are wonderful and polite people like yourself."

" Excellent," Mr. Jones said, his relief nearly palpable, " I'll just get the keycard for the honeymoon suite and escort you up there personally. If you'll please follow me." With that, he turned and headed back towards the concierge desk, Ron and Sheena following quietly behind.

Out in the parking lot of the Upperton Marriott, the red corvette slid into a parking space next to Ron's motorcycle, the driver's side door flashing open for an instant as the occupant climbed out, and then slammed shut just as quickly as he headed for the hotel. Senior Senior Junior hadn't been able to believe his own eyes when Shego had left her house in the company of Kim Possible's sidekick. He'd returned to her house himself to try once again to convince her to go out with him only to see that the reason she'd shut the door in his face was that buffoon. His disbelief had only increased when he saw just where the two had spent their evening. How he wondered, stepping through the sliding glass doors of the hotel could she possibly want to be with Possible's little boy toy when he could offer her so much more than the buffoon ever could? His luck had taken a turn for the better, however, when he'd seen the hotel they obviously decided to seek refuge from the storm in. The Upperton Marriott, was one of the few "clean" businesses quietly owned by the Seniors for money laundering purposes, though that didn't mean it didn't have other uses as well, as Shego and the buffoon were about to find out, the hard way. " Ah, hello Rose," He greeted the woman behind the concierge desk, " It's been too long since I've been out here. You're looking lovely as ever." He paused as Rose visibly preened under the praise, " Tell me, have a young blond man and a woman with long dark hair come in tonight?"

Rose's smile immediately vanished, " Unfortunately yes." She looked at him, stricken with the thought that her tone might have offended the owner's son, " Are they friends of yours Mr. Senior Junior?"

" Sort of," he hedged, " could you tell me what room they're staying in this evening?"

Rose snorted delicately, " The honeymoon suite. They claim to be celebrating their engagement and raised enough of a fuss with Mr. Jones when I suggested that they find a hotel that better suited their "situation" that he offered to let them stay for free tonight." She rolled her eyes, " Personally I think they made the whole thing up."

An engagement, eh? Senior Senior Junior thought Well, then they should celebrate in style, shouldn't they?. " Really? I always wondered how long it would take the two of them to realize they were right for each other," he lied, pasting a false smile firmly in place, " Please, send a bottle of the best champagne to their room. But just let them believe it's on the house; a toast to their future happiness."

" You don't want them to know who sent it?" Rose asked surprised.

" No, no," He placed his hand against his chest, mock modestly, " I wouldn't want to spoil their "alone time" by having them come back down to thank me or anything. You know how couples can be." He winked conspiratorially, " But perhaps I'll catch up with them tomorrow. I'll be taking my personal room here tonight" He began heading for a bank of elevators when he suddenly turned around to face the desk once again, " Oh, and when you send the champagne up, please make sure it goes up on one of the "special" carts." With that he turned once more and continued on his way.

Ron had to admit that the honeymoon suite did indeed have an impressive view, even if all he could see at the moment was the torrential downpour outside and a few lights in the distance. Mr. Jones had let them into the room, set the key card on a desk near the door and quickly left after apologizing once again for the rudeness of the concierge. " So," he said with slightly forced casualness, across the room and examining a fireplace set into the wall, " Do you think this actually works or is it just for show?"

"We are on the top floor," came the reply. There was something in Sheena's tone that was just a little bit off, and Ron turned to find her sitting on the queen sized bed and staring at the flashing LED light of her ring thoughtfully, " it's probably gas powered considering there isn't any wood in here."

Ron ceased his examination of the fireplace and pried his shoes off before wading through the almost ankle deep carpet to the bed and sat beside his love, taking her hand in his and giving it a gentle squeeze, " Hey, what's wrong?" he asked, letting the concern he felt fill his voice.

Sheena turned her head just enough to study his face, her emerald eyes tinged with red from unshed tears, " It's silly really," she replied, wiping at her eyes with her free hand and forcing a laugh, " Just there was the little girl in the restaurant and then our cover of being engaged….and of course, this" She held up her left hand for emphasis with a shaky smile, " It's all things that I told myself that I could never have and that I didn't want, and I'm starting to realize just how big a lie that was."

There was only one thing Ron could think to do at that point; he wrapped Sheena in his arms and held her as close as he could, allowing her to take comfort and support from his silent embrace as she dealt with her personal demons. The moment, however was interrupted all too soon by a knock at the door and a call of "Room service!"

" Do you think you could get that Ron?" Sheena asked softly, " I don't want anyone to have to see me when I'm such a mess." She reluctantly freed herself from his embrace and pushed herself off the bed, heading in the direction of the bathroom.

Ron smiled, watching her for a moment, " Sure, though I still think you're beautiful." The comment earned a smile as she disappeared into the bathroom and closed the door. They're probably trying to convince us that this is an acceptable place for a honeymoon he reasoned, rising from the bed and walking to the door I'd probably feel bad about deceiving them if that bitch hadn't damn near called Sheena a whore to her face. He opened the door to find a cart, topped with a bucket containing a bottle of champagne, a vase with a single red rose, and two champagne flutes. " Uh," he rubbed the back of his neck in confusion, " I think you have the wrong room. We didn't order anything."

" It's compliments of the hotel sir," the young room service employee said, brushing a strand of blond hair back behind her ear, " and congratulations on your engagement."

" Thanks," Ron replied, blushing. He hadn't exactly been thinking when he'd come up with that cover, but rather had just run with the first thing that popped into his mind. The funny thing was that the thought didn't bother him that much. " Here," he pulled his wallet from his pocket and handed the young woman a twenty as she wheeled the cart into the room. Sure he was over-tipping, but then he was getting the room and champagne for free, so he figured in the long run it helped balance things, " Keep the change."

" Thank you sir," the young blond replied, her eyes widening in shock, " have a wonderful evening."

Ron grinned, fighting the urge to make some wildly inappropriate comment, and waited until the young woman had left the room before calling " It's safe to come out now Sheena." He was struggling with the cork when he heard the bathroom door open. " How're you feeling?"

" Much better, thanks," She answered, crossing the room and pointing a slender finger at the cork, " Watch out." A thin beam of plasma jetted from her finger and blew the cork free of the bottle. Smiling, she took the bottle from Ron and filled each glass with the amber liquid, " Sorry I kind of broke down there….I guess I'm still getting used to this whole being in love thing." She took a glass and lifted it invitingly.

Lifting the other glass, Ron gently clinked it to hers and smiled, " I understand. It's still pretty new to me too…but, I do love you Sheena, with all of my heart. And if all of this is something you'd like…" he trailed off, blushing a deep crimson and taking a sip from his cup. Amazingly, he managed not to choke.

Sheena, on the other hand, wasn't so lucky. " Was that a marriage proposal? Are you proposing to me?" Her eyes were wide with shock and it was a miracle that she hadn't shattered the champagne flute considering how tightly she was suddenly holding onto the glass.

Ron smiled, " Maybe we could think of it as betrothal? I mean, I don't think either of us is ready for a formal engagement; let's not kid ourselves, there's still some major obstacles that we're going to have to figure out a way around before too long. But, who knows…maybe someday?" He averted his eyes and quickly downed the rest of his champagne, anything to keep her from seeing the hope there.

Sheena smiled softly, " I like that idea Ron. And you're right, we are going to have to get past some major hurdles before we could get to that point…but, just so you aren't too nervous; someday I'm going to say yes." She almost told him about Dr. Drakken's knowing about their relationship, but held back. No need to ruin a wonderful evening. She downed the rest of her drink and captured one of Ron's hands with hers, gently pulling him towards the bed. " Make love to me?" she asked softly.

Ron's eyes widened momentarily at the vulnerability he heard in her voice, " I thought your first plan for the hotel room was a nice warm shower?" He blushed, barely managing to set his glass back onto the cart before being pulled completely out of range.

Sheena smiled knowing she'd win him over anyway, " The shower can wait." With that she pulled Ron to sit on the bed and captured his lips with her own, teasing them with the tip of her tongue until he opened his mouth in a low moan. A moan that was quickly echoed by one of her own as Ron's hands slipped under the back of her shirt, massaging the small of her back and pulling her closer. The warmth from his hands seemed to spread throughout the rest of her body, chasing the remaining chill of the rain away along with any doubts she had about the rightness of their relationship. " Now, isn't this a much better way to get warm than a shower?" She teased, breaking the kiss and smiling.

" If you aren't the one who got their lip split open earlier," Ron replied, laughter dancing in his eyes, " then yes." He stuck out his lower lip in a mock pout to underscore his point.

Sheena fought the urge to laugh, leave it to her Ron to inject silliness into an otherwise serious situation. My Ron She thought happily I like the sound of that. " Poor baby," She purred, " Don't you know that a little pain can be a good thing?" Before Ron could reply, she leaned forward and caught his injured lip with her teeth, biting firmly enough to draw a hiss of pleasure from him, but gently enough not to break the skin again.

" Point taken," Ron replied, his breath hitching when she released his lip. Questioning with his eyes, he dropped his hands down to the bottom of her tank top; when he caught her fractional nod of approval, he drew the damp material away from her skin and over her head and tossed it clear across the room to land in front of the fire place. " We can use it to dry our clothes later," he explained before she could ask. If she had any objections to that, they were quickly pushed from her mind as Ron pushed her gently back onto the bed and knelt between her knees, slowly kissing every inch of her skin as he slowly moved from the top of her pants towards her supple breasts.

A deep growl worked its way from Sheena's throat, equal parts pleasure and frustration as Ron continued his exquisite torturous journey over her skin, leaving no centimeter un-kissed. Damn she swore mentally, feeling her nipples, and certain lower places, tighten almost painfully I've created a monster. She really couldn't complain though, as she felt Ron's mouth finally claim her right nipple, his teeth holding it lightly while his tongue danced over it in short, quick, flicks. " I take back every thing I ever said about you being slow…" she managed to get out breathily, arching up and pressing her breast more fully against his mouth, " you're a quick learner…" Further words were lost in a moan as he moved his mouth to her left nipple and began the process over again.

When Ron felt her hands wind their way into his hair and urge him further up her body, he did the exact opposite, retracing his path down her body with kisses and causing another moan to escape from Sheena's mouth. Reluctantly it seemed, her hands released their grip on his hair and Ron pushed himself away from the bed slightly, his hands deftly unfastening the button on her jeans and beginning to roll the rain soaked denim away from her body. Her hips lifted slightly to allow him to slide the pants the rest of the way down her body and he tossed them almost perfectly next to her shirt in front of the fireplace. Turning his full attention back to his love, his eyes widened in shock as he took in the skimpy black g-string that barely covered her. Well he mused, waiting for his heart rate to slow to a safe level That explains how she got those on in the first place. Not a whole hell of a lot of material to get in the way of the jeans.

" Problem?" Sheena's voice seemed to float to his ears full of dark amusement.

It took two tries before Ron found his voice, " No. No problem. How beautiful you are just always catches me by surprise, no matter how aware of it I am." He glanced up along her body to catch her eyes and smiled, seeing the slight flush in her cheeks at his words.

" Show me," she whispered, laying her head back and closing her eyes in anticipation.

That was all the encouragement Ron needed. Sliding the flimsy undergarment down her slender legs and letting it drop to the floor, he lowered his mouth to her, lightly flicking his tongue over her entrance with short, teasing motions that made her gasp and arch her hips closer to his mouth. Ron's hands found her hips and pressed them gently back to the bed, establishing the fact that he was in control before lowering his mouth to her once more and slowly dragging his tongue over her clitoris.

Sheena's hips strained to buck beneath her lover's hands as she felt an orgasm surge through her body. " Ron…" she gasped, " Ron…" There was no way he could have missed the effect he was having on her, was he just going to keep driving her crazy with that wonderful tongue of his? She had her answer a moment later when she felt his tongue plunge into her fully, and his hands slid from their restraining position on her hips to pull her more firmly against his mouth. "Ron…." She moaned, waves of pleasure crashing over her as his tongue continued its exploration " Ron…please…I need all of you"

Ron smiled and released his hold on her before sliding up onto the bed to lie beside her. " You have all of me Sheena," he whispered brushing a raven lock away from her delicate earlobe, " anytime you want. All you have to do is ask."

For what seemed like the thousandth time, Sheena felt her cheeks burn. He's lucky he's so good in the sack She groused, flipping over and tugging at the bottom of Ron's shirt which he readily let her remove Otherwise there's no way he'd get away with all the teasing and making me blush. As she lowered her mouth to Ron's chest, she was interrupted by that little nagging voice that had taken up residence in her head You know he'd still get away with it. You love him, and you would regardless of his skill in the sack. the voice paused the fact that he's a certifiable sex god is just a bonus, and you know it. Sheena didn't bother to pay any attention to the voice, instead focusing on driving Ron as crazy with need as he'd driven her; her mouth found its way up to the pulse point in Ron's throat and she bit down on it firmly while sliding a hand to rub his length through his jeans, making him moan and press up against her hand.

Ron shuddered, feeling her tongue dance over the sensitive skin on his neck, and then there was of course the divine torture her hand was visiting upon him. He could feel himself straining against the rain soaked material of his jeans and underwear, yearning to have it replaced by her warmth, until he thought he'd break in half. " Sheena…" he groaned, " don't tease….just take me.." His words were drowned out by an almost animalistic growl that tore its way from his throat as she increased the pressure of her mouth on his neck.

Sheena pulled away, smiling like the cat who ate the canary, and stared into her love's flushed face for a moment, as though she were giving the matter deep and serious thought. That'll teach him to tease me she thought wickedly triumphant. " Are you sure," She teased, continuing to rub his member through his pants, adding just a little more pressure, " Really sure?" She was sure that she knew the answer to the question but she was honor bound to torture him just a little more, if for no other reason than to remind him not to tease her so successfully in the future.

" Yes…." The word was little more than a moan, as Ron arched up against her hand once more.

There were no more words as Sheena slid off the bed and unfastened his pants, tugging on them impatiently as she waited for him to lift his hips to help free them. Once his pants landed on the floor in front of the fireplace beside her clothes, his underwear were the next to go, pulled from his body so suddenly that his erect member sprang up and smacked against his abdomen. She had to stifle a giggle as she straddled his waist and slowly lowered herself fully onto him, actually thankful that he'd taken his time to tease her as she as wet enough to take his length without any pain. " You know I love you," She whispered, lowering herself until she was laying on top of him and staring into his warm brown eyes, " Right?"

Miracle of miracles, there was enough blood left in Ron's brain to not only understand the question but to also formulate a responses, though it was a close call. " I know, and I love you too," he answered, bringing a hand up to softly caress her cheek. He pressed his hips up to her, grinding firmly and was rewarded with a deep moan and Sheena's hands digging into his side before he withdrew slightly, only to plunge once more into her warmth.

" Oh…oh ..god.." Sheena panted, pressing back against Ron, determined to keep him buried in her as deeply as possible. She lowered her lips to his, slipping her tongue into his mouth, probing tenderly until his tongue responded. A simple kiss quickly became a battle for dominance between the tongues, and their hips responded the tension, picking up the pace.

" Sheena…" Ron gasped, breaking away from the kiss and deftly rolling them over so that he was on top and gazing down into her beautiful green eyes. " I…I'm..going to…"

" Please…" She replied, feeling herself tighten around him almost painfully in anticipation. Once more she leaned up and captured his injured lower lip between her teeth with a low growl. It was apparently more than Ron could handle and Sheena was dimly aware of his crying out her name as he spilled himself inside of her, triggering an orgasm of her own that left her seeing spots of light dancing before her eyes and struggling just to catch her breath.

" You were right," Ron smiled, pulling himself from within his love and laying beside her, sliding his arms around her slender form and resting his head against her shoulder, " That was a much nicer way to get warm than a shower."

Sheena chuckled, " I'm always right," she replied, lifting one of his hands from her stomach and kissing it lightly before setting it back down and snuggling into Ron's warmth. " And don't you forget it."

" Yes ma'am," Ron answered, his breath sending shivers through Sheena's body, " We should probably hit that shower and get cleaned up, huh?"

" In a minute," Sheena replied sleepily, " can we just stay like this for a little bit first?" The tentative question was answered by a contented sigh from behind her as Ron snuggled closer to her body. Sheena smiled to herself, as her eyes drifted shut, they'd shower later, but for now it just felt so wonderful to be wrapped up in the arms of her love that she didn't want to lose that feeling.

Unfortunately for the couple on the bed, they had been so wrapped up in each other that neither had noticed a small recording device extend from the bucket containing the champagne bottle. A recording device that had captured everything that had transpired between the two of them and was now retracting into the body of the champagne bucket and powering down.


	12. Chapter 12

Bad as She wants me to be

Chapter 12: The Things We Do for Love

Author: RoguesKnight

Disclaimer: Ron, Shego, Kim, et al. Are not mine. I'm just borrowing them for a bit.

Rated: M. If any chapter deserved it, this one definitely does. You've been warned. (Violence, language, character death)

Dedicated to: My wonderful, loving and supportive wife. Also to my kind, patient and extremely understanding reviewers. The next update isn't going to take as long as this one did, I swear.

The sharp sound of someone knocking on the hotel room's door was followed up by the somewhat more muffled sound of Ron falling off the bed and taking a good potion of the sheets with him." Who, huh, wha?" he pondered, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and taking a good long look around the room as the events for the previous evening slowly filtered back into his semi-awake mind. An amused chuckle brought his attention back to the bed.

" And here I thought those mystical monkey powers of yours would make you more graceful," Shego teased, taking a firm grip on the sheets still on the bed and yanking hard to cover herself. Of course, this left Ron completely naked and laying on the floor, " I guess I was wrong." She nodded pointedly towards the door, " It's probably room service, come to get the tray from last night, go answer it."

" Right," Ron nodded slowly, pushing himself to his feet, " Room service. I'll just go let them in." He quickly looked around from his clothes, or at least something to cover himself with then shrugged in resignation, heading for the door and the incessant knocking, Fine, they don't want to come at a decent hour, they can't complain about the way I open the door he thought. " Go answer the door, she says," he muttered good naturedly on his way, knowing full well the raven haired vixen on the bed could hear his every word, " We're not even married yet, and already she's giving me orders."

" What was that?," Shego asked, letting a touch of her old menace slip into her voice; after all it wouldn't do to have him lose all fear of her. Keeping one hand on the sheets pressed to her chest, she grabbed one of the pillows and, quick as thought, hurled it at the back of Ron's head. Her improvised missile, however, never even came close to reaching its intended target.

Without evening turning his head, Ron's right arm shot out behind him and he snagged the fluffy projectile mid-flight. " Thanks," he smirked, glancing over his shoulder, " I believe someone was making disparaging remarks about my grace?" Deciding to further show off, he brought the pillow around to cover himself and unlocked the suite's door at the same time, all the while keeping his eyes on the now seriously irked green goddess on the bed. " Sorry to have kept you waiting," he said loudly enough so the room service attendant didn't get impatient and start knocking again, " We were still kinda asleep…" Opening the door, fully intending to give the attendant at least a small piece of his mind at disturbing an otherwise peaceful morning, Ron had no time to react as he turned to see a remarkably tanned fist headed straight for his face. The blow landed hard enough to send the young man sprawling back to the bed, a thin trickle of blood oozing from his lower lip.

"Ron!" Shego almost shrieked, tossing the covers, ad all pretense of modesty, aside and rolling off the bed to land in a crouch beside her injured lover, " Are you alright?" Her eyes wide with concern, she brought a hand up to wipe the blood away.

"Is he alright?," an all too familiar voice whined, somehow still managing to drip arrogance from every syllable, " I almost break my hand on his pasty face and you're asking if he's alright?" Senor Senior Junior strode into the room flanked by two heavily armed men who were aiming assault rifles at Shego and Ron. " Really, where are your priorities Shego?"

A snarl forced its' way from her throat as Shego lowered her hand from Ron's face and turned to face the intruders fully, igniting both hands in emerald plasma and sizing up her opponents. The guns of course, would have to be the first to go, then the gunmen. And then….maybe she could convince Ron to let her take her sweet time in dealing with Mr. Cocky. Wait…that just sounds wrong...and gross… the stray thought wandered through her brain and she shook her head to clear it Too much time with Stoppable…way too much time with Stoppable…damn it Shego focus . " You want to know where my priorities are SSJ?" She snarked, taking no small amount of satisfaction from knowing that deep down the abbreviation bothered the pretentious man more than anything, " Give me…oh, five to ten seconds and I'll show you where my priorities are."

" Hey!" Ron cried indignantly, ignoring the assault weapon trained on him and pushing himself back to his feet, letting the pillow drop to the floor and glaring down at the top of Shego's head, " That just hurts. You know darn well it'll take more than five to ten seconds, and lets just see how long you last after a three hour sex marathon." Placing hands on hips, he turned his body to the side, to give the full effect of a pissed off glare, as well as to see if he could move out of the line of fire and give Shego some room to maneuver. Unfortunately the guard who'd been keeping a bead on him moved with him, never letting Ron out of his sight. Well, so much for plan A Ron groused silently, Leave it to Senor Senior Junior to finally hire some muscle who know what they're doing

Before Shego could respond, Senor Senior Junior interrupted again " Ok, that is definitely TMI." He fixed Ron with a mock sympathetic gaze, " However, I am not completely without pity. I think there are pills that can help your little problem." There was a sudden flash as the intensity of Shego's plasma increased. " Oh, and if you're thinking of trying anything heroic Shego…" he chuckled, as though the thought was beyond ridiculous as he turned to face her, " I'd suggest taking a closer look at my body guard's armor."

Forcing her eyes away from the weapons in the guards hands, she did as suggested, and a hollow pit formed at the bottom of her stomach as she recognized the armor as Hench Co.'s new plasma resistant armor. Stifling a groan, she automatically added a couple of minutes to her previous assessment of how long it would take before she could teach Junior a thing or two about why it's not a good idea to interrupt a happy Shego. " So, you actually spent some of your allowance and bought some real guards. You really think that'll make any difference?" She slowly rose to her feet, a feral grin playing across her lips, " Oh, and remind me that after I'm done kicking your ass all around this hotel that I need to pay Jack Hench a personal visit."

" But of course," Senor Senior Junior nodded, making his way to the room service cart, " I have no doubt that you can probably evade gunfire and subdue my guards without so much as breaking a sweat on your gorgeous green body." He grinned lecherously, leaning against the cart. " The real question here is, is Mr. Stoppable also faster than a speeding bullet when it doesn't come to sex?" He snapped his fingers and both guards turned to cover Ron, their fingers resting lightly on the triggers of their assault weapons.

" And again, I say hey!," Ron shouted, " lets leave my sexual performance out of this! And, I am so not faster than a speeding bullet, sexually anyway." It was all he could do to keep the look of outrage on his face. There was absolutely no need to bring up the fact that due to his mastery of monkey kung fu he probably was fast enough to dodge gunfire, at least if the perfect opportunity presented itself. All he had to do was wait for the opportunity and hope that the guards didn't have itchy trigger fingers.

" Oh, I beg to differ," Junior said, a sadistic gleam entering his eyes as he pushed down on the far right edge of the room service cart, causing a small tray to extend from the base of the cart. " And I have the evidence to back it up." Reaching down, he removed what appeared to be a CD-ROM disk from the tray and then gently pushed the tray closed again.

The hollow pit in Shego's stomach got larger as she stared at the disk in Senor Senior Junior's hand, a sneaking suspicion making its' way through her head. " What do you want Junior?" She asked, extinguishing her hands and stealing a cautious look at the guards. To her extreme annoyance, they weren't even remotely paying attention to what their employer was saying, but rather keeping their attention focused on Ron. " And for that matter, how did you know we were here?"

Junior's grin widened, " Ahh…this is just like old times, no? Isn't this the time you taught me would be appropriate to reveal my evil schemes to my captives.?" Ignoring Shego's embarrassed groan and Ron's snort of disgust, he continued, " How I found you is quite simple. I simply followed you on your little " date" last night." He sneered deliberately at Ron, " I'm sorry Stoppable, but J.P. Bearymore's Pizza Party-torium? I don't think there's a pill that can help lame, cheap dates." He paused and brought his free hand to his chin as if in thought, before turning to face Shego, " Or should I be apologizing to you? A woman such as yourself could do so much better than this loser."

From the corner of her eye, Shego saw that the comment had struck home as Ron's shoulders slumped and his head dropped almost imperceptibly. " So this is your master plan?" She challenged, silently vowing to teach him new meanings of pain, " Insult and bore us to death? Cause I've gotta say, as plans go, it's worse than any of Drakken's." Junior's jaw tightened visibly at the casual insult and a wave of pleasure rippled through Shego. That's just the beginning pal. No one, but no one, gets to talk down about my boyfriend. She thought.

" Fine," Junior ground out through clenched teeth, " You want to know what I want. The answer is you, Shego." He continued over the twin growls emanating from his two captives, " I'd have been fine with just the one date that I wanted before, but no. You had to turn me down, and for Possible's lap dog of all people." He shook his head incredulously, " Now, my price is higher. I want you to take that piece of plastic crap off your hand, what's left of it anyway. And I want you to replace it with this." He snapped again and a young woman wearing a room attendant's uniform scurried into the room, placed a small velvet box in Senor Senior Junior's waiting hand and almost twice as quickly left the room again, this time closing the door behind her.

Shego however had barely noticed, as her eyes had been drawn by his remark to the charred remnants of the LED ring on her left finger. Like so many times before in her life, something good had been ruined and it took all her will power to keep the tears from spilling from her eyes. The creak of the velvet box's lid being opened drew her gaze to its contents, a small gold ring with what was possibly the largest diamond solitaire she had ever seen. The words spilled unbidden from her lips, " You've lost your fucking mind, haven't you?" The tension in the room was almost palpable.

Ron let a small smile play on his lips and turned his head just enough to enjoy the outraged expression on his love's face. " Lets forget for a moment that a contract made under duress, such as this marriage proposal, isn't legally binding. Why on earth do you think she'd say yes?" There was a moment of stunned silence as Ron's actual grasp of law was absorbed by the room's occupants. " Oh come on," he cried, "I'm allowed to know something every now and then."

"She'll say yes," Senor Senior responded smugly, " because if she doesn't, I'll show this pretty little disk to the world." He grinned, " And you two get to join the illustrious company of Pamela Anderson, Tommy Lee and Paris Hilton. I can just imagine how thrilled Kim Possible will be when she finds out that you've been sleeping with the enemy, literally." The grin turned ugly, " And Shego…what about you? How do you think your standing in the villain community will be affected if word gets out you've gone soft for Possible's lap dog. I don't think even Drakken will keep you around with that little embarrassment weighing you down. Where will you go? No legitimate job will take you, not with your record. You're no hero. And no self respecting villain would work with you without worrying that you're going to stab them in the back. Now, what do you say? Will you be mine and mine alone?"

Ron turned to face Shego full on, noting the actual fear reflected in her eyes. "I know what I say," he commented, his tone ice cold. " Boo-yah." The word had barely left his lips before he slipped his left foot under the pillow on the floor and kicked, sending it straight into the air. The sudden motion drew the guards' attention and their fingers tightened on the triggers of their guns, shredding the pillow in mid-air. Fortunately for Ron, he was nowhere near the path of the bullets, having dropped into a momentary crouch before launching himself into the midsection of the nearest guard without giving him a chance to adjust his aim.

With one of the guards out of the equation for the moment, Shego lashed out with her right foot, catching the other guard under his right elbow, the force of the impact enough to loosen his grip on the weapon and sending it flying across the room to land on the floor beside the window overlooking the parking lot. " Awww…did that hurt?" She sneered, letting her hands flash to life with plasma, " Good…cause the pain just started." Pausing long enough to make sure Ron wasn't having any trouble with the other guard, she advanced on her chosen victim. Who cares if that armor's plasma resistant? She thought Best half of the battle's psychological anyway Judging by the dark stain slowly spreading down the guard's pants, he was learning that lesson the hard way. Shego dodged a clumsy right hook, ducking easily beneath the blow and returning the favor with a swift jab to the solar plexus, knocking the wind from her opponent and driving him back with enough force to cause his head to slam into the wall, leaving an impressive hole in it and the guard, of course, out of the fight. Damn Shego mused amusedly It's a good thing we got the room for free, cause there's no way in hell we'd get a security deposit back.

Ron might not have had the psychological advantage of glowing green hands, but the element of surprise was proving just as effective. He'd swiftly managed to disarm the guard he'd tackled, tossing the gun under the bed, and thusly out of reach, but the maneuver had given the guard time to get back to his feet and pull a wicked looking knife from his belt. " Man, I can't believe you fell for the old pillow trick," he taunted quickly side stepping this opponent's thrust, " I mean come on. Have you watched no action movies whatsoever? Distracting the guy with the gun is the first step to kicking his ass. Want to know what the next trick is?" Another thrust, this one much lower, and also avoided, though just barely. Right, mental note Ron thought, backing hastily to avoid the blade's advance Next time, make sure to put clothes on before getting into life or death struggle with gun and knife wielding wack jobs. Risking a glance behind him, Ron realized that if he didn't do something fast he'd be up against the bed with no room to maneuver. " Screw it," he muttered, " I'm done fighting fair." If his opponent had half a brain cell, he might have wondered what the young blond meant by that. Unfortunately, Senor Senior Junior had only been willing to pay for only marginally competent guards. Without enough sense to flee, or even bother to switch tactics, the guard thrust his blade forward again, intent on driving it into Ron's chest. Ron, of course, had other plans. He quickly side stepped the blade thrust and grabbed his assailant's arm, before pulling it behind the guard and up sharply effectively dislocating the shoulder with an audible pop, forcing the man to drop the knife with an agonized scream, the first sound he had made throughout the fight. It was also the last as Ron stepped back in front of his victim and drove a fist directly into the man's right temple, knocking him out.

Darkly amused laughter and applause suddenly seemed to fill the room as Shego walked up to her love and placed a plasma free hand on his shoulder, " I knew you were more than just a pretty face Stoppable." More seriously, she asked, " You ok?" Ron nodded, smiling shakily. " Glad to hear it." Scanning the room, her green eyes narrowed as she found Senor Senior Junior cowering in a corner as far from the actual fight as he could be without actually leaving the room itself. " Now, I seem to remember you having some lame ass plan to make me your personal slave." She said coldly, holding out her hand expectantly.

" Ah yes…" Junior stammered, " it was perhaps very ill advised. How about we just forget this whole unpleasant thing? I realize now that I was wrong to try to force you into a relationship that you don't want to be in." Cautiously, as if realizing the danger in the room was far from over, he approached Shego and Ron by the room service cart and delicately placed the incriminating DVD into Shego's outstretched hand, only to pull his hand back with a whimper of pain as her plasma flared to life, melting the disk and searing the flesh from the last two fingers of his left hand. " Please," he begged, backing away quickly cradling his burned hand, tears of pain flowing down his face, " let me live. I can make you a very, very wealthy woman. I swear, I'll never mention what I know to anyone…please, I am too pretty to die." His back hit the window overlooking the parking lot and he realized that there was nowhere else he could go. " Please."

Unfortunately, his pleas were falling on deaf ears. This bastard actually wants pity? She thought, incredulously as she advanced, a low an dangerous growl escaping her throat After what he wanted to force me to do? After threatening the best thing that's ever happened to me? No fucking way. A quick flick of the wrists and twin plasma bolts shattered the window behind Junior. " Sorry," she said humorlessly, " I've got all the money I need already. And you know what? I know you're not going to tell anyone else about us. That's the beauty of dead men, they tell no tales." With a grin, she pulled both arms back, drawing out the moment as long as possible. " Oh, and the too pretty to die thing? I'd take a look at your hand there and reconsider that statement." She was about to bing her arms forward again and end the whole thing when a sudden shout brought her up short.

" Sheena," Ron cried desperately, waiting for her to turn and look at him before continuing, " Don't do it. He's not worth it."

" Why not?," She half snarled, turning just enough to show she was listening while keeping an eye on her prey, " After what he wanted to do to us? To you? All out of some petty and twisted jealousy. Why shouldn't I end him right here and now?" Despite the righteous fury blazing through her body, part of her desperately hoped that he would have a serious reason for her to stop. After all, she'd never killed before, what would happen if she took that final step? Would he still love me? She wondered Could he? I mean robbing banks, trying to take over the world on a semi-regular basis aren't nearly as serious as murder. Hell, even if Possible doesn't get all the loot we steal back, the banks are insured, and when has even one of Dr. D's lame schemes worked? But death, that's permanent.

Ron took a step closer to her, reaching out to grasp her left hand, and waiting unti she extinguished the plasma there before doing so, " Because," he replied softly, " You're better than that. You're not a killer." He gave her hand a gentle squeeze, " Heck, you know I'm nowhere near as good a fighter as you and you haven't even seriously hurt me before…and you know why. For all the bad ass attitude and the sarcasm, deep down you're a good person Sheena."

It took everything she had not to let the tears she could feel welling in her eyes show. Damn it, when the hell did he get so insightful She mused silently, letting the flames go out on her right hand as well, " You know Stoppable, you're probably the only person on this planet who can get away with saying something like that to me." A small smile tugged at her lips, " but what are we going to do about…" her words died on her lips as she noticed that Junior had made his way to the discarded assault rifle that she'd thrown near the window and was now leveling it at them awkwardly.

" About me," Junior finished a tad hysterically, " who said I'd give you the chance? If I can't have you, then neither can Stoppable." With that, he began to laugh and his finger tightened on the trigger.

Time slowed, Shego could clearly see the muzzle flash but her limbs felt too heavy to move, she knew it was too late anyway but what really hurt was knowing there was no way she would even be able to shove Ron to safety. I hope he knows just how much I love him She prayed, closing her eyes and not even bothering to deny the full truth to herself any longer. She was dimly aware of Ron's pulling her behind him, twisting to block the bullets path in a stupidly heroic gesture. And then, the remarkable happened. Time sped back up and instead of hearing the sound of bullets striking Ron's body, her ears were greeted by the sound of them ricocheting off something distinctly metal. She opened her eyes, wondering if she'd actually been hit and her mind was playing tricks on her only to gasp in amazement at the reality of the situation. Ron was still shielding her with his body, but now he was also shielding himself, literally. A large silver shield had appeared in his left hand and was easily catching the bullets and reflecting them harmlessly away. " How?" She managed to get out.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Ron grinned, "Long story. But basically magic shape shifting sword that responds to my needs." He considered elaborating when the room suddenly fell silent again save the sound of Junior's gun dropping to the floor. Cautiously, Ron lowered the shield just enough to peek over the edge and fought the sudden urge to swear violently as he took in what caused the gun to fall. Junior was staring down in shock at the red stain that was quickly spreading down his customary yellow shirt. In the blink of an eye, the shield was replaced my a silvery roll of bandaging cloth. " Hang on Junior," Ron said, releasing Shego's hand and moving towards the injured villain, " You're going to be alright."

Before Ron could take another step, Junior looked up plaintively, " It's not fair," he said, his voice hollow, " I'm too pretty to die." He took a stumbling step backwards and fell silently through the broken window.

For a moment, neither Ron nor Shego moved. Then reality set in and Ron rushed towards the window, the bandaging cloth blinking back out of existence as he did so. He'd almost made it when he was suddenly pulled back and found himself wrapped in Shego's tight embrace. " You don't want to look Ron," She whispered softly, slowly running her hands over his back as she held him close, she could feel his body convulse with silent sobs and pulled him closer. " Shhh, honey," she said tenderly, placing a soft kiss against his forehead, " There's nothing you could have done. He made his choice." She considered adding in that it wasn't Ron's fault, but discarded the idea, knowing there was no way that Ron would agree right now. If that fall didn't kill that son of a bitch, I'd do it for what this is going to do to Ron She seethed. A small part of her was still shocked that Ron had been willing to try and help someone who had been trying to kill him but deep down she knew that he wouldn't be the same man she'd fallen in love with if he didn't try to help everyone, even if they tried to hurt him. I just hope I'm enough to help him through this She worried. Almost on cue, the all too familiar sound of emergency vehicles split the air. " Wondered what was keeping them," She muttered tiredly, releasing Ron, " Come on Ron, we've got to get out of here. Prison jumpsuit orange does absolutely nothing for my complexion." She quickly gathered Ron's discarded clothing from the floor and dropped the bundle into his arms before looking for her own clothing, only to be stopped by Ron's whisper.

" I…I killed him Sheena," Ron said, sounding incredibly lost, his face devoid of any emotion at all, suggesting that the full weight of what had happened still hadn't hit him.

Quick as thought she was back in front of him, lifting his chin so that he could see the depth of concern and love in her emerald eyes. " No, you didn't," she countered fiercely, her eyes blazing with a passion hotter than her plasma ever could, " You didn't kill him. You saved me. You were even willing to save him. You're a hero, not a killer. He just had the bad luck to have been born a moron." She waited until she saw a little of the familiar light creep back into his brown eyes before releasing him. " I love you Ron Stoppable," She whispered, kissing him tenderly, " now we've got to get going." This time when she released him she could hear him struggling into his clothes as she searched for the rest of hers and a glimmer of hope sparked to life in her heart. Maybe, just maybe things could be ok.

They managed to sneak downstairs and outside through a back door to the hotel without encountering any other patrons, or worse, law enforcement, though the approaching sound of sirens told them in no uncertain terms that they needed to get moving before the cops arrived and started detaining guests for questioning. " So," Ron asked, managing to sound somewhat like his old self, " Think we should cross this off the list of honeymoon locations?" Straddling the motorcycle's seat, he turned to glance at his passenger and was rewarded by the absolutely shocked expression on her face.

Sheena almost dropped her helmet, " You still mean it," she breathed, disbelieving her luck.

" Of course I do," He replied, turning around and pulling his own helmet on, " I might have to do a little research to find a plasma resistant engagement ring." He smirked, though she couldn't see it, " Or we could just keep going back to J. P. Bearymore's for replacements, who knows, I might even beat you at whack a mole someday." Revving the bike to life, her response was drowned out by the engine, but his smirk blossomed into a full blown smile as he felt her arms wrap around his chest and give a squeeze. Taking that as a sign that she was ready to go, he took off, doing his best to look as nonchalant as possible as they passed the police and ambulance that were entering the parking lot. Fortunately, none of the emergency vehicles seemed to take notice of the pair. There is no way it can be this easy Ron thought darkly as he maneuvered the motorcycle out onto the highway and began the trek back south. In fact, if this were a movie I'd probably be saying that I've got a bad feeling about this right about now .

The trip went surprisingly smoothly, and before she knew it, Sheena found herself standing back on her front porch, her helmet tucked under her right arm. Nervously playing with her keys with her left hand, she smiled shyly, " So….you want to come in? Maybe grab a bite to eat?" She couldn't believe how much had changed in just under twenty-four hours. Well he did say that I might have fun last night her little voice took pleasure in reminding her. This time she didn't bother to squash the voice. Damn it…I have gone soft…

Ron's answering smile didn't quite reach his eyes, " You know, I'd love to…normally." He sighed, " but I should get headed back to Middleton and make sure everything is ok with Rufus and god knows we don't want Kim going all stalker and trying to track me down even without the Kimmunicator." Noticing how her face fell, he continued, " Of course, I'm still suspended from school and my parents are still out of town…how about you sneaking up to Middleton tonight and I'll make dinner? I mean if you don't have any work plans or anything." He braced himself for the rebuke about his bringing up work, but it never came. Instead, he found himself enveloped in a tight hug.

" It's a date," Sheena beamed, not bothering to hide her excitement, " Besides unless it's something really big and complicated, I'm sure Dr. D can manage to spare me one more night…if he knows what's good for him."

This time, the smile did reach his eyes, " So what you're saying is you're not only going to get called in to "work" tonight, you're going to be putting in some overtime." Ron smirked gently.

"Smart ass," Sheena replied, shoving him away playfully, " Get going before I change my mind about letting you go."

" I'll see you tonight then," Ron said, kissing her softly before making his way off the porch and back to the green and black motorcycle. Slipping his helmet on, he allowed himself one last lingering glance at the porch before kicking the bike to life and roaring away.

The trip back to Middleton wasn't long by any stretch of the imagination, but it allowed for more than enough time for Ron to get lost in his thoughts. What am I going to do? He wondered as the scenery flew by No matter what Sheena said, I'm responsible for another man's death. There was no way his involvement was going to stay buried. They were lucky enough to have gotten out of the hotel before any awkward questions got asked, but it was only a matter of time. No doubt, the hotel had security cameras in the lobby. At the very least his and Sheena's images would be splashed across the news. Maybe I can give Wade a call when I get home, see if he can wipe the security recordings The thought brought him up short and he almost lost control of the bike No he decided I can't do that, he's involved in this too deeply as it is. If I have to go down, there's no way I'm taking him with me….him or anyone else. Behind his helmet he smiled as an old lesson hit home again. It wasn't the physical form that made a man, but rather the choices he made. Ron finally had an idea of just what kind of man he wanted to become.

Two hours later, Ron opened the front door of his home and took a good look around, as if seeing it for the first time. " If home is where the heart is," he mused, walking into the living room and dropping it onto the couch, " I guess this isn't my home anymore." Sure, he still felt comfortable there, but for the first time he began to wonder about what lay ahead for him. He'd always thought that he'd stay in Middleton after high school, even with all the exotic places he'd seen. Now though, it felt almost constrained somehow. Shaking off his thoughts, he called out. " Hey Rufus, I'm home! Come on down buddy and we'll go get some Nacos, maybe pick up a movie and come back here to veg." Hearing movement from the upstairs, Ron took a seat on the couch beside his helmet and stretched leisurely to await the arrival of his naked mole rat friend.

" Mind if I come along too?" Kim's voice came from the base of the stairs, causing Ron to nearly jump out of his skin. Turning towards the sound of his oldest friend's voice, he noticed two things almost immediately. First was that Kim was wearing nothing but one of his oversized t-shirts, that fell just shy of mid thigh. The second was that she was holding a bright red and shaking Rufus, though Ron couldn't tell if that was from embarrassment or amusement.

Probably both He decided, trying to figure out just what the hell Kim was doing here. " KP," he said, to his credit, managing not to stutter, " Not that I mind you being here, but what's going on? Are we needed for a mission?" He schooled his face into his normal, dopey sidekick lopsided smile, " Cause usually I'm the one who loses their pants on missions."

Kim sauntered over to the couch, swing her hips suggestively the whole way, and took a seat just a little too close for comfort beside him. " You're so funny Ron," she smiled, setting Rufus down on Ron's lap and sliding her hand slowly up his thigh. " There's no mission. Things have been pretty quiet since the bank thing yesterday. In fact that's why I'm here. I wanted to check up on you and see how you're doing, but you weren't here…just Rufus, and you didn't have your Kimmunicator with you…and I tried calling Wade, but he told me you'd asked him to deactivate your tracking chip…I was worried Ron." She gazed up at him, blinking sadly, almost giving him the full effect of puppy dog pout.

Ron fought the urge to roll his eyes and pull away from her touch, instead, he picked Rufus, who had returned to his normal coloration and stopped shaking , and set him on his shoulder. " I didn't mean to worry you Kim.," he said sincerely, reaching down and taking her hand from his thigh. Unfortunately, she took this as a sign that he wanted to hold her hand and immediately wrapped her fingers around his. Turning his head just enough so that she couldn't see his expression, he shot Rufus a desperate look, only to be met with a helpless shrug. " It's just I wasn't able to get a bead on where Shego and Drakken might be holing up, and since it was such a nice day I thought I'd do some driving to de-stress. I got caught in a downpour and decided to crash in an inexpensive hotel room for the night instead of doing something stupid like driving back home in those conditions." Well it wasn't so much of a stretch. Hotel rooms don't come too much less expensive than free he thought.

Kim smiled, giving his hand a squeeze and sliding closer, until she was almost sitting in his lap, " Well, I'm just glad you're ok. Though you could have called me, I'd have been happy to come pick you up. Or I could have stayed with you, kept you some company. You shouldn't have had to be alone Ron," She teased slowly teased her tongue along her lower lip.

Ron gulped, " Why don't you go put some clothes on and we'll hit Bueno Nacho?" He carefully, pried his hand free of Kim's surprisingly vice like grip and smiled as carefree a smile as he could force, " I mean, not to knock the wonderful "continental breakfast" I got at the hotel, but I'm still a growing boy." As if on cue his stomach rumbled noisily. "See?"

Kim chuckled in agreement, " It's a date then." Pecking Ron on the cheek, she pushed herself off the couch, flashing far too much bare thigh in the process, " Don't miss me too much handsome." With that she headed back upstairs to get some clothes.

Ron waited until he was sure she was out of hearing distance before replying, " Not much of a chance of that." He dropped his head back against the back of the couch. " What am I going to do Rufus?"

In response, Rufus immediately scampered down from his perch on Ron's shoulder and burrowed into the cushions of the couch, peeking back up to gaze sympathetically at his best friend, " Hide…yup yup"

Ron laughed, " I wish it was that easy pal. If you can think of a place where it might be safe for me to hide that I wouldn't have to call in a favor to get to, let me know." Sighing, he leaned over to grab the remote for the TV and flicked it on, flipping idly through the channels and wondering just what was taking Kim so long, after all it wasn't as though she kept a whole closet of her clothes in his room. Yet another thing to love about Sheena He smiled happily, managing to relax slightly, even knowing his best friend turned psycho stalker was upstairs doing god only knew what in his room, She doesn't take forever to find the perfect outfit. He was broken from his reverie by the sound of footsteps on the stairs and he dropped the remote to the couch and turned towards the steps, " So, all ready to g…" the words died on his lips as realized that she was wearing a pair of his khaki pants, slung almost obscenely low on her hips and an old camp Wannaweep t-shirt that was at least a size too small, " Ah Kim," he hesitated, " those are my clothes."

" I hope you don't mind," She said with a slight smile, " but my clothes were kind of dirty. But don't worry, I didn't borrow any of your boxers or anything…though I have to admit I was tempted. Besides, isn't it like some unwritten rule of relationships that it's ok for a girl to borrow her boyfriend's clothes?"

Before the full implication of her statement could make its way into Ron's head, the television abruptly switched from a Smarty Mart commercial to a breaking news story, " We're sorry to interrupt this regularly scheduled programming," said the dark haired male anchor, who the screen identified as Bob Bernstein, " but we have late breaking news from Upperton, Colorado."

Leaping gracefully from where she'd stood, Kim flipped over the back of the couch and grabbed the remote, turning up the volume. " Upperton? Something that happened in Upperton actually made the news?"

Ron had a feeling he knew what was coming, but as strongly as he willed them too, his legs just wouldn't propel him towards the door. He sighed heavily and dropped his head toward his chest, an action that went completely unnoticed by Kim, but not by Rufus. Catching the mole rat's interested look, Ron mouthed "Sorry buddy" silently.

Rufus didn't have a clue what Ron was apologizing for, but it was obvious that his friend was in pain, and that was all the naked rodent needed to know. He quickly scampered out of the couch and back onto Ron's shoulder, patting his cheek in support.

" Early this morning, gunfire broke the calm at the Upperton Marriott, coming from the honeymoon suite of all places.," Bernstein intoned, looking seriously into the camera, " Shortly after the cessation of the gunfire, the body of noted international criminal Senor Senior Junior, fell through the shattered window of the suite to land on the sidewalk below. Sources report that the victim may have been dead prior to impact as it was noted that there was a bullet wound in his upper chest."

" My god," Kim gasped, turning to stare at Ron, her hand covering her mouth, " I mean Junior wasn't up for the Nobel peace prize or anything but he didn't deserve that. Who would have killed him?" Without waiting for his response, she turned again to focus entirely on the broadcast.

" We now go live to a press conference being held jointly by the chief of the Upperton City police and Global Justice, due to the high profile nature of the victim," Bernstein said. The screen shifted to an obvious police squad room where a reed of a man with thinning grey hair stood behind a podium on which was emblazoned a gold shield with Upperton Police inscribed on it. Behind him, as stodgy looking as ever, was Doctor Director, in full Global Justice regalia, her hands clasped tightly behind her back.

" At approximately nine thirty a.m. this morning, the victim did indeed fall from a broken window at the Upperton Marriott," the thin man, ribbon appearing at the bottom of the screen identified as Chief Use Less, stated simply, " and though we do not wish to jump to any premature conclusions, our preliminary investigation does suggest that foul play may have been involved."

A voice called from off screen, " Chief Less, do the Upperton Police or Global Justice have any leads as to who might be responsible?"

Ron fought the urge to swear violently. Here it comes He though morosely, closing his eyes in anticipation.

On the screen, the Chief and Doctor Director exchanged a brief look before he stepped aside and allowed her to take his place at the podium. " Bear in mind the investigation is still ongoing," She cautioned, " but security footage from the lobby of the hotel has revealed that the occupants of the honeymoon sweet were the infamous villain known as Shego," here a stock photo of Shego appeared on the screen to the left of Doctor Director, " and the well known side kick of Colorado's own Kim Possible, Mr. Ronald Stoppable." Again a stock photo was placed on the screen, directly next to Shego's. At this revelation the room burst into life, and Doctor Director waited patiently until the commotion subsided before continuing. " While an alias was used for Shego, hotel records do indicate that Mr. Stoppable was in attendance. Furthermore, examination of the room discovered an assault rifle under the single bed bearing Mr. Stoppable's fingerprints. Two unconscious men were also found in the room and taken to Upperton Medical for treatment, it is hoped that these men may be able to provide some understanding as to what went on in the room." She paused and looked directly into the TV cameras, " While there are many outstanding warrants for the arrest of Shego, it is my sad duty to announce that we have issued a warrant for the arrest of Mr. Stoppable as well, as he is considered to be a flight risk. We hope that he will upon hearing this, turn himself in so that we can get this matter resolved as quickly as possible. That's all, no more questions."

The screen went back to the anchor's desk in the news studio for his reaction, of course, neither Ron nor Kim were paying attention to it. " Ron," Kim whispered, her eyes wide and watery, " Tell me this is a mistake, tell me they got it wrong." When her plea was met by silence, she tried again, " Ron? This is some kind of trick, right? Right?"

Taking a deep breath, Ron gently lifted Rufus from his shoulder and set him on the back of the couch, whatever came next, he didn't want Rufus getting caught up in it. " I didn't want you to find out this way KP," he said softly, turning to meet her hopeful gaze.

Kim could have sworn at that moment she felt her heart shatter, " You didn't want me to find out what like this Ron?" She asked, her voice oddly hollow. No, I must be imagining things, there's no way he can be saying what I think he's saying. " Ron, if you need help…."

Another deep breath, " I don't think you can help KP. Or that you're going to want to after what I have to tell you." Finally, his legs seemed to be willing to work again and he stood, pacing back and forth in front of the TV, " This morning was an accident," he started, " I didn't mean to kill Junior. I mean, hey, I'm not going to shed any tears over him or anything. But it was purely accidental, I was protecting the woman I love with all my heart." He stopped pacing and took in Kim's shocked expression as realization began to dawn on her.

Kim's eyes narrowed dangerously and she pushed herself to stand, seeing her friend in a whole new light. It all made sense now, the change in attitude, the clothes, the motorcycle. She'd been such a sap. " How long Ron?," She growled, " How long have you been just toying with my heart while you've been seeing that emerald hued whore?"

Her hands curled into fists and uncurled rhythmically as she continued. " I mean, I know how limber she is, she must be a great fuck, isn't she?"

Ron crossed his arms over his chest and glared defiantly, " Don't you dare talk about her like that." He replied coldly, " I love her. And she may have done a lot of things that are questionable in the past. She's a wonderful, kind, loving person deep down. While she may hurt me physically every now and the, which I really like by the way," he took more than a little pleasure from her shocked expression, " She's never broken my heart…unlike someone I could name."

Ron's words hit her harder than any blow she'd ever taken, but she brushed them away, though not without some difficulty, " Ron, you're my best friend, so I'm going to say this once and only once. If you don't turn yourself in to GJ so they can get this mess sorted out, I'm going to break more than your heart." Her hands remained clenched into fists and she settled into a fighting stance. Don't make me do it Ron She begged silently.

There was a squeak from Rufus' position on the back of the couch, followed by the sound of his claws hitting the floor and scurrying to safety, and Ron let out a breath he wasn't aware he'd been holding. " Bring it," he said confidently, settling into a fighting stance of his own, " Kimmie."

The battle was joined. Kim stuck first, lashing out with a kick towards Ron's groin. Ron countered the blow, bending his knees and shifting to take the impact on his upper thigh with barely a grunt of pain. " My turn," he stated with a grin, grabbing her leg and shoved backward, knocking her back onto the floor. He moved to strike her with a kick to her thigh but she dodged, rolling away from the attack and springing back to her feet.

" You'll have to try a lot harder than that," Kim countered. The rest of the battle was almost eerily silent save for the occasional grunts and hisses of pain. The first blood went to Kim with a sharp jab to Ron's nose that left him wavering on his feet for a moment. Shaking it off, he countered, driving a fist into her chest and following up with a leg sweep, once again taking Kim to the floor, her head striking with an oddly hollow thud. Once again Kim tried for a groin strike, this time connecting. As Ron double over Kim reached up and pulled him down towards her, rolling back and kicking out, sending Ron flying backwards into the wall. Kim pushed herself back onto her feet and ran over to where Ron had fallen, hoping to knock him out and end the fight while there was still hope for their friendship. Unfortunately, she wasn't quite quick enough as Ron rose to his feet and slammed a fist into the side of her head, which combined with her forward momentum, was just enough to send the redhead into unconsciousness.

Before her body could hit the floor for a final time, Ron caught his old friend's body. " Sorry KP," he said sadly. He carried her over to the couch and laid her out on it gently, " You left me no other choice."

As he straightened back up, the front door was kicked open and off its hinges and the front windows shattered as Global Justice personnel in full assault gear entered the room, their weapons trained on Ron.

" Easy fellas," Ron said, putting his hands up in a gesture of surrender, " Don't want any trouble. I'm sure we can handle this peacefully." The only response form the assembled soldiers was a shift in the group for the commander to enter the room. Ron's eyes widened in shocked recognition. Oh come on He thought you've got to be kidding me? He's leading this?

" You know Stoppable," remarked the insufferable Will Do, " If anyone had asked me if you were actually stupid enough to come back to Middleton, I'd have said yes, yes, a thousand times, yes. But even I wouldn't have thought you were stupid enough to come back to your parents house." He paused, " You know, I hate being proven wrong." Without another word, he raised his right arm so that his wrist was aimed at Ron and pressed a button on his watch, sending two thin cables into Ron's chest, followed by a powerful stun blast. The last thing Ron heard before joining Kim in unconsciousness was Will's voice on the radio, " Control, this is Agent Do. We've got him. We're bringing him in."


	13. Chapter 13

Bad as She Want Me to Be

Chapter 13: Confessions and confrontations

Disclaimer: Ron, Kim, Shego, et al, are not mine.

Dedication: To my loving wife who I've drafted into being my proofreader and idea bouncer offer (yes) I know it's not a word. Also to the wonderful people who take the time to read and review. As promised, an update in less than a year. You guys rock hard!

Sheena lingered on the porch for a few moments after Ron's departure, lost in thought and cursing Senor Senior Junior's idiocy not for the first time, and most certainly not for the last time. Did he really think that I'd cave in and marry him out of fear? She shook her head in disgust and turned to head in to her home. I mean come on, really romantic there. Pausing to turn on the living room light, she set her helmet on the floor, a small smile tugging at her lips and pulling her away from her darker thoughts as she considered another, slightly goofy, but incredibly sweet proposal she'd received. A couple rolls in the hay and one real date and he wants to marry me A surprisingly girlish giggle escaped her lips at the thought I mean, I knew I was good but I never thought I was that good, it must be some sort of record to go from dating to engaged There was a small, ridiculously practical part of her that was just screaming to turn on the TV, check the internet, anything to see just what had hit the news about Junior's death but she ruthlessly squashed the thought. " Is this what my life has come to," she asked the empty room as she plopped down on the couch, leaning her head against the cushions, " Always having to be two steps ahead of the law, looking over my shoulder every step of the way just to make sure I'm not being followed?" She was torn, for more than five years now, it had been the only life she'd known, a life that she'd come to love despite the complications and interruptions, and yet now it seemed lacking somehow. Ron's proposal wasn't the first time she'd longed for a simpler life, just the first time that she'd dared to believe that it could be as rewarding as the life of crime, though for entirely different reasons. She signed angrily; closing her eyes tight against the tears she could feel welling behind them, " Damn you Stoppable, why couldn't you have just been another jerk looking for a good time? Why did I have to actually fall in love with you?"

There was no way she could just use her relationship with Ron to break up team Possible now. That's the last time I pick up a random stray in a bar She swore silently But what could she do? She'd done the hero thing before, and that just didn't work out. However, she couldn't see Ron seriously deciding to kick the hero business like she had and take up a life of crime, no matter how disturbingly good he was at it, as his brief stint as Zorpox had proven. But was there some third alternative that they could both live with? " Argh!" She cried, pushing herself from the couch. For once in her life she didn't find being left alone with her thoughts to be comforting. It wasn't that she had a problem with being alone; alone was something that she was used to, now lonely was something new. " Maybe I'll go check in with Dr. Drakken, " She mused, pacing the length of the living room, her hands clasped tightly behind her back, " see just how lame ass plan of the week is going." The thought brought her up short, the couldn't be so lonely that she'd willingly put up with his psychotic ranting, was she? "Ok…that's soo not happening unless there's nothing else I can think of. Besides when he gets into one of his schemes he hardly even notices me unless there's something he needs stolen. Probably a good thing too, neither of us are the greatest at small talk. Best to keep the relationship on s professional level." She snorted in disbelief as she imagined trying to explain the quandary she found herself in to her employer, " Never thought I'd say this, but I need some more female friends…or a single female friend for that matter." The problem was, aside from DNAmy and Adrena Lynn there seemed to be a lack of female villains willing to associate with her, and those two weren't so much friends as professional competition.

Competition! That was it. A slow smile split her delicate features and she hurried into her bedroom. Kneeling at the foot of the oak four post, and fighting the blush that threatened to creep across her cheeks as the memories of her first night with Ron wriggled to the forefront of her mind, she stretched her arm out, reaching beneath the bed until her hand made contact with one object that had never failed to help her regain focus when she was feeling overwhelmed. Curling her fingers around it, she withdrew her arm, and along with it one of her most prized possessions. It was a katana, purchased in Japan on one of her infrequent vacations from villainy. While she rarely relied on weapons other than her own skill, she had a deep and abiding love of swords and the philosophies that had sprung up concerning their use. The blade was a simple one, unadorned by any decoration and a far cry from being mystical in nature, however in the hands of a master, there were few weapons that could match its efficacy and elegance. Sheena had made sure to take the time to become a master and had taken top honors in several competitions that stood as testimony to her mastery.

Laying the blade across her lap, she took the time to weave her hair into a tight ponytail before rising to her feet and carrying her prize into the living room where she reverently removed the sword from its sheath and settled into a low stance, bringing the tip of the sword above and slightly behind her left shoulder. Stepping forward, she brought the blade down in a deep cut across her body, focusing on keeping the movement fluid and controlled. Stepping back again she brought the blade back up across her body, this time to rest above her right shoulder. She repeated the cut this time from the right before bringing the blade back up again. For almost two hours she lost herself in the simplicity of the blade, her attention focused solely on the precision of each movement. When she finally stopped, her body was covered in a thin sheen of sweat and her arms burned from the build up of lactic acid in her muscles, but her mind was finally calm. She was considering a nice long, hot, shower to relax her muscles when an all too familiar voice emanating from her computer.

" Sheena Elizabeth Goh, if you're at home get your green ass over here pronto!" the imperious voice commanded. Any other time she'd have been tempted to just blast the computer into a million pieces and buy, or steal, a better on to replace it at a later date However, just coming off the rush of her workout, and perhaps even a little more mellow due to her relationship with Ron, she simply walked over to the computer bank and plopped herself down in her seat, keying the camera on as she did so, so that the party on the other end would get a clear picture of just how annoyed she was.

" First of all Hego," She replied, making a show of rolling her eyes, " You're not mom, or dad, so, unless you want me to take a trip home for the sole purpose of rearranging your anatomy in new and interesting ways, I would suggest dropping the middle name, now." There was a certain amount of pleasure in seeing her blue suited and masked older brother's adam's apple bob convulsively at the threat even with a few hundred miles between them. " Second, I gave you a way to get in touch with me for emergencies only. And by emergency, I meant life or death, and maybe not even that qualifies. So if this is something lame like the Mathter, or Avairous stealing your powers again…."

" Shut up Sheena, I'm beyond not being in the mood for your lip right now," Hego snapped with uncharacteristic anger. He took an obvious breath and closed his eyes before continuing more calmly, but the anger in his eyes hadn't abated at all, " I mean you've done some truly awful things in your time, but this….this is a new low."

She was momentarily taken aback by her brother's outburst, but quickly hid it behind a façade of indifference, " You want to clarify a little bit Herman?" She yawned, " I mean you yourself just pointed out that I've done a lot of things that you're not proud of and I'm not really in the mood for a lecture today."

Hego paused, for all his sister's bluster, he'd always believed that deep down she was still a good person but if her indifference wasn't an act there were only two reasons he could think of that could explain it: first was that she truly didn't know what he was talking about; second, and more disturbing, was that she truly didn't care. He hoped with all of his heart that it was the first. " You really don't know what I'm talking about, do you?" He carefully scrutinized her image for a reaction.

" Ah, yea, hello…I think we've covered that already. Now, are you going to give me whatever precious piece of your mind you've decided to share, or can I say goodbye and hit the shower?" She replied.

" Here," Hego said softly, clearly reaching for computer controls just beyond the pick up range of the camera. The screen was suddenly split, with Hego's image taking up the left half, a streaming news report from Go City's own Alicia Applebaum with WTGO News took up the right half.

" The international criminal and criminal justice communities were shaken this morning by the surprising death of noted criminal Senor Senior Junior in Upperton Colorado," the overly perky red head stated as somberly as she could with an insanely wide smile still in place, " Authorities have announced that they are currently seeking the Super villainess known as Shego as well as Ron Stoppable, the famous sidekick to teen hero Kim Possible, in connection with the death which at this time is being ruled a murder."

" What have I done?" Sheena asked, just audibly enough for the camera to pick up on. Her eyes focused on the news broadcast, she didn't notice the relieved sigh from Hego, or the immediate softening of his expression.

The broadcast continued, with the auburn haired anchorwoman suddenly bringing her right hand up to her ear and frowning intently for a moment before brightening again, " We now have breaking news on this story, confirmed by Global Justice, who have been taking an intense interest in this matter, that Ron Stoppable has been apprehended in Middleton Colorado by Global Justice forces with assistance from Kim Possible though full details on the capture have not yet been revealed."

Sheena felt like her heart had just been ripped out of her chest and became even more pale than normal, tuning out the rest of the broadcast and whispering " No." This was all her fault, she'd brought Ron into her world when she'd brought him home from the bar that night and now he was being arrested for something that wasn't even his fault. Once again something good in her life had been corrupted just by being associated with her. And for once, almost crippling indecision gripped her heart.

Hego paused, considering his little sister's reaction for a moment, he'd dealt with all sorts of villains in his time of heroing, and while it was obvious she knew something about Senor Senior Junior's demise, her reaction certainly didn't match that of any of the hardened killers he'd faced. " Come on Sheen," he implored gently, " talk to me. Ron's a good kid, even without the whole sidekick thing, I can't wrap my mind around why GJ wanted to arrest him in relation to this. And you…" he paused, " we've had our differences, and you've made some choices that I don't agree with. But I don't think you have it in you to be a killer. What's going on?"

Sheena mulled it over for a moment, of all her brothers, Hego was the least likely to judge her without taking everything into consideration. She had never been as close to the twins, due to their age difference, and Mego…well the code name chosen by Michael Edward Goh just said it all. " Fine…I'll talk." Over the next hour and a half, breaking down in tears at several points, she told him the whole story from the night she'd brought Ron home from the bar, including her initial intentions, up to her falling head over heels in love with the younger man and his proposal followed by Senor Senior Junior's attempt to force her into marriage and his subsequent death.

Hego had to admit, it was a lot to take in and while he couldn't approve of his little sister's initial intentions towards Ron, he could tell that she genuinely loved the young man and he certainly couldn't begrudge her that. " Wow, " he said after a long moment, " First I want to say congratulations. Ron's a great guy and he's lucky to have you in his life." He smiled sincerely.

Sheena could have been knocked over by a feather. She'd have expected almost anything but that from her older brother and she had to blink rapidly to keep from crying again, she knew that Hego still thought she had some kind of soft spot for her family, she didn't need to further that belief any more than she already had." Thank you," She smiled weakly, " but what am I going to do?"

Hego sighed and ran his hand through his dark blue hair, " Ultimately you're going to have to make a choice," he responded, " whether you want to be Sheena Goh, the good hearted girl who's made some bad choices in her life, or Shego, the villainess who cares only about herself." There was a sudden beeping on his end of the transmission and he frowned deeply. " I've got to go sis, but believe me when I say that no matter what decision you make, you'll make the right one for you." With that he suddenly cut the transmission, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

Surprisingly, for once speaking with her brother had left her with a sense of purpose and the fear that had gripped her heart had lessened. It wasn't completely gone of course, the man she loved was in the hands of Global Justice after all. It wasn't like she could just go in hands blazing and free him herself, as romantic a gesture as it would be. Pushing herself back from the computer terminals she retrieved her katana and brought it back into her bedroom, returning it to its home under her bed before walking into her closet and retrieving one of her trademark green and black jumpsuits. Instead of putting it on, she turned to examine her reflection in the full length mirror, holding it against her body. Who did she want to be, Sheena, or Shego? Could she choose one and leave the other part of her behind? " Maybe I won't have to," She said confidently, a secret hope blossoming in her heart. Without another word, she removed the jumpsuit from the hanger and headed off towards the shower.

Fifteen minutes later, she exited the shower, fully clothed in the jumpsuit, a sense of purpose in her stride. She stopped briefly in the living room to retrieve the remote to her stealth hovercraft from its charger beside the computer bank. She paused and took a long look around the living room. For two of the last five years she had made her home here, and if she was lucky, she'd be able to come back again with the man she loved If not…well, Dr. Drakken wasn't the only one able to rig a self destruct; granted, hers was remotely from the hovercraft and required her to enter a precise sequence to be keyed. One of these days I'm going to convince Dr. D that as pretty and shiny his red self destruct buttons are, they just aren't that practical. With that final thought, she exited her home and pressed the button on the remote that would remove the cloaking shield. The hovercraft shimmered into view and the entrance ramp lowered as she left the porch and approached the vessel, grim determination evident with every step she took. And speaking of Dr. D She mused It's going to take some work, some cajoling, maybe even some threats, but I'm probably going to actually need his help to find and spring Ron from Global Justice's grasp. If nothing else he can be a distraction. Plopping herself down at the controls of the ship, she stifled a groan; she had a bad feeling that it she was going to have to pull out all the stops to get Dr. D on board. Then again, it _had_ been a while since they'd played a round of Drakken goes ouch. Maybe it wouldn't take so much work on her part after all. The hovercraft lifted silently into the air and began the trek towards the lair.

An hour and a half later, she set the hovercraft down in the lair's hangar bay next to her personal fighter. She could have taken a more direct route, but with the news of her involvement in Senor Senior Junior's death, GJ was likely to be keeping an eye on the skies. No sense of letting them get their hands on her any sooner than she wanted them to. Granted, she could just as easily spring Ron from within as without, but jail breaks were always risky, and too much could go wrong, even with careful planning, to risk Ron being hurt. As she disembarked, she was slightly surprised to see Dr. Drakken pacing anxiously at the foot of the ramp. He couldn't actually have been worried about me, could he? She wondered idly. " Yo, Dr. D, what's the what?" She asked trying not to sound too bored for once.

" Shego!," the azure madman exclaimed with equal amounts of excitement and frustration, " Would it have killed you to call?! This is why I said you need to ditch the video conferencing and get a real phone or at least keep your cell turned on."

The villainess had to admit that the outburst had taken her aback for a moment, Well, well, well….maybe he does care on some level. I'm going to have to remember that the next time we're renegotiating my contract, see how much more I can get for my services. Filing the thought away for future reference, she favored him with a rare smile, " Easy sport, I'm here now. Where's the fire Dr. D? Need me to open a jar or something?" She knew that antagonizing him wasn't the best way to butter him up, but hey, old habits die hard.

If the comment struck home, he didn't let it show. " The fire, so to speak, has yet to start Shego," he began, rubbing his black gloved hands together in anticipation, " While you were out I was able to patch up the damaged synthodrone from the bank job, and replace the two that were destroyed by your carelessness, which is coming out of your pay, but I was able to add an additional five to fully operational status. And in light of recent events, we're ready to begin the first phase of Operation That's Amore tonight."

Shego rolled her eyes dramatically, Oy, where the hell does he come up with these names . " Ok, I'll bite," she groaned, dropping her head into her hands with a sigh, " Operation That's Amore?"

" Exactly!," he replied with a grin, " you know, When the moon hits your eye, like a big piece of pie…" he ceased the horrible Dean Martin impression and stared at her blankly. "What?"

" First of all Dr. D," She began, lifting her face from her hands and wishing she'd chosen to cover her ears instead, " It's when the moon hits your eye like a big _**pizza**_ pie. Secondly, don't quit your day job." She paused, " Wait…flip the order of those…but finally, what the hell are you babbling about?"

Dr. Drakken sighed deeply and dropped his head for a moment, " You know Shego, sometimes I get the distinct impression that you don't pay attention to anything I say. Project That's Amore…rockets…Middleton Space Center….moving moon out of orbit, holding the shipping industry hostage….is any of this ringing a bell?" Glancing up, he saw that she was watching him with a knowing smirk, hands resting on hips. One of these days I'm going to find some competent help who actually respect me he groused silently before raising his head again and continuing his rant, " Anyway, now we have the perfect opportunity to strike, and I have you to thank for it…with the buffoon out of commission in a Global Justice cell Kim Possible will be all but powerless to stop us…oh how I wish I could have seen the look on her face when she heard the news. So congratulations Shego, on a well executed plan…all this time spent in my shadow must finally have paid off, eh?"

" More than you can imagine big guy," She replied with a sigh, " look, I've gotta be straight with you Dr. D…the plan was a failure…I mean, yea, I thought it would be great to split Ron and Kimmie up, but I didn't mean to put the kid in jail." She paused before continuing more softly, " I didn't mean to fall in love with him."

Dr. Drakken was a man of many talents, most of them useless, but unfortunately for him, knowing how to appropriately interact with others had never been one of them, which was fine and dandy if you were attempting to take over the world. For dealing with an emotionally volatile and heartbroken villainess, a little finesse might have helped avoid an unpleasant fate. " You…and the buffoon?" Drakken laughed, doubling over and resting his hands on his knees to keep from collapsing to the floor, " That's a good one…whoo….I never knew you could be funny about things other than my plans…" Glancing up at his henchwoman, the first inklings of how serious she was began to worm their way through his brain, just a fraction of a second too late. " You were kidding, Shego, right?" he asked nervously, noting with some dismay that she looked rather…irked. " Right?" He whimpered, straightening up and considering running for his life. The last thing he was aware of was a black glove approaching his face. At least she was just using her fist he thought as he headed towards the floor and unconsciousness.

An hour and a half passed before he came to, still laid out on the floor of the hangar. Pushing himself to a sitting position, and wincing at the throbbing pain just below his left eye, he became aware of two facts. The first gave him a little hope, it seemed that all she had done this time was knocked him out. Humiliating as it was, he knew it could have been a lot worse. The second fact was almost enough to chase the hope back out of him; her personal hovercraft was still in the hangar, as was her jet, which meant more than likely she was still in the lair somewhere. " Ooh…this can't be good," he muttered to himself, pushing himself to his feet and wiping the dust from his navy blue pants. Maybe I should just step out for a bit…give her some time to calm down…maybe invest in some body armor and make sure my health insurance premiums are paid up he mused as he headed towards the doorway that lead deeper into the lair. A small part of him would admit that running for his life at this moment rivaled all of his world domination plans combined in terms of sheer brilliance; there was another part of him that recognized that for all her teasing, insults, and sarcasm, Shego was the closest thing he had in the world to a genuine friend. Granted, he paid her a ridiculous salary, but he knew that she had gotten other job offers from villains who could afford to pay her much more than he could, and yet, she still stuck by him. There was no way he could just abandon her in her time of need. It took all his will power not to jump at shadows as he wound his way through the lair, but to his surprise, he found neither hide nor hair of Shego. Nothing vengefully destroyed, no cowering goons…it was, he decided, a situation calling for drastic measures. Silently as possible, he made his way to the kitchen, keeping his senses alert for attacks that never came. He grabbed a couple of earthenware mugs down from a cabinet and set them down on the counter before preparing the drink that always lifted his spirits after a plan failed spectacularly; cocoa moo. Setting the mugs in the microwave and hitting the power button, he retrieved a seldom used silver tray from beneath the sink, wondering briefly if what he had in mind was the most prudent course of action. " Since when have I cared about a little danger, I'm Dr. Drakken," he reminded himself, " the most dangerous man on the planet." It was a slight exaggeration, but it did the trick. The microwave beeped and he carefully removed the steaming mugs of cocoa moo from it and set them on the tray, fully prepared to rush in where even angels would fear to tread; Shego's personal quarters.

His hands occupied with the tray, he had to use his feet to knock on her door. There was no response, in either terms of words or plasma, and so he steeled his nerves and nudged the door open just enough to peer around the edge of the door. " Shego?" He ventured cautiously, " do you mind if I come in?" He could clearly see her form on the bed at the far side of the sparsely decorated room, but again, got no response. Well…I'm sure if she didn't want me here she'd let me know.. he reasoned, inching his way into the room and over to the bed. He sat down on the bed, keeping a respectful distance between himself and Shego, and set the tray on his lap. " So…" he hedged, " you want to talk about it?"

Stunned, Shego rolled over onto her back and grasped the bedclothes to pull herself into a sitting position. First Hego….now Dr. Drakken wants to listen to me whine like some silly schoolgirl with a broken heart? She wondered sniffling slightly and trying to rub the tear tracks from her cheeks Does no one get that I/m evil and heartless anymore? Still, from the expression on his face, she could tell that he wasn't comfortable with the proposition but was willing to be there for her if she was willing to open up to him. A Pre-Ron Shego would have just kicked his ass out, and the cocoa moo with him, but now…maybe it wouldn't hurt to give being open a try, and the cocoa moo did smell amazing. " Thanks," she said, her voice hoarse from crying, as she wrapped her hand around the nearest mug and brought it to her lips for a brief sip, " that's good cocoa moo." She smiled slightly " And…you can never repeat this to anyone…but sorry about the whole punching you in the face thing. It's just been a really rough day."

Drakken smiled encouragingly, " Don't worry…I've had worse…in fact you're usually the one who does it to me." Shego actually chuckled at the statement, " I can't honestly say I'm surprised, based on the way the news has been going on and on about that incident in Upperton, I'm just grateful you weren't in the mood for an extended bout of Drakken goes ouch."

" The thought did cross my mind," She admitted, a little of her old self seeping into her words before she sighed heavily and took another sip from her cup. " But you were out cold after one punch…it just wouldn't have been as much fun. Besides, you have no idea how badly tears mess my aim up."

Dr. Drakken nearly choked on his own drink as he fought the urge to laugh, Shego joking with him and not at him was definitely new territory, and surprisingly pleasant. " So," he began when he was able to speak again, " how long?" The question was asked without any hint of malice or accusation.

Shego sat quietly, considering her response carefully, " Just a few days really…not even a week," she answered haltingly, before turning to face him fully, " At the same time, it feels like this is something I've been looking for all my life." At Dr. Drakken's quiet nod, she continued, " When I took him home from the bar that first night, he was in a bad place and I didn't have any second thoughts about taking advantage of that….but the next morning," she sighed and a wistful smile crept over her delicate features, " that's when I knew I was in trouble. He made me breakfast in bed, and wouldn't let me convince him that we had just had a one night stand. He was the first guy to ever even think of trying that…and then, he found out that the Princess was tracking him down and he headed left my home in one hell of a rain storm just to make sure she wouldn't find us together and destroy my home fighting me…"

A proverbial light bulb lit above Drakken's head, " The synthodrones you destroyed at the bank…that wasn't an accident, was it?"

Shego actually blushed, " No…I mean, if I thought that it'd have endangered the job I probably wouldn't have done it…pretty sure anyway" She shook her head slightly as if to chase the doubts away, " At the same time…I didn't want to see the first person to truly like me for me get, hurt for trying to do the right thing. You know?"

To her surprise, he nodded, setting his now empty mug on the tray, " Indeed I do Shego. The life of a villain can be thrilling, and rewarding financially but it can also be a very lonely existence and even I am not immune to the occasional heartache."

" That brief thing you had with DNAmy?" Shego asked, continuing to be surprised by his admission of loneliness.

Dr. Drakken actually shuddered, " Please Shego, I'd like to keep my cocoa moo down. And while there were some nice things about it, Monkey Fist is more than welcome to her… a woman her age still obsessed with cuddlebuddies, there's something just not right about that." He paused, deep in thought, " No, this was back in college actually, and while I hadn't made a name for myself yet as a villain, the lure of evil was definitely there. And so was she, which was all that was keeping me from devoting myself fully to evil at the time…she was a brilliant young medical student majoring in neurosurgery, gorgeous red hair and the clearest blue eyes you've ever seen…I was so totally gone for her I'd have done anything she asked." His eyes took on a glazed look as he became lost in the past.

Shego smirked, suppressing the urge to needle him, " So what was her name Dr. D? And what happened to her?"

Drakken shook himself back into the present, his expression sad, " Her name was Anne Believable," he said softly, " We were actually quite close friends for a while and I was even working towards asking her out when I came back to the dorm from my mechanical engineering class one day and caught her in bed with my roommate. That was the first time I ever considered world conquest seriously. I thought maybe if I could actually give her the world she might notice me."

Shego gasped, her eyes widening, " Wait…your college roommate was.." Drakken nodded wordlessly, a slightly embarrassed smile on his face. " So that means that Anne Believable became…." Another nod. " So this whole thing about the princess thinking she's all that but not being all that is really personal?"

Drakken smiled, " Not a word of this to anyone." It was more than he'd planned to reveal about his past to well…anyone, but it was well worth it to see Shego showing some signs of life again, or at least not actively crying or hitting him anymore. " So," he stated as she placed her empty cup on the tray, " How about after you help me with Operation That's Amore, I help you with what I'd like to call Operation Romeo and Juliet." He offered her his hand.

Shego paused This is quite possibly the first time he's ever treated me like an actual partner and not just the expensive hired help….god, does this mean I'm actually going to have to start showing him some respect? Despite her reservations, she grasped his hand in hers and shook it briskly. " Deal…two conditions though. First, this does not mean I stop speaking my mind about your plans." She grinned as she caught sight of his barely perceptible nod of acceptance, " Second, Operation Romeo and Juliet? Going back to the first condition, I have to ask…did you not read Romeo and Juliet ever? It doesn't exactly have a happy ending."

Rising from the bed, Drakken grinned in response, amusement twinkling in his dark eyes, " Shego, you wouldn't be you if you didn't feel the need to mouth off about my plans every now and then," he acknowledged, " And as for Operation Romeo and Juliet…let's just say that the Bard didn't have the benefit of my genius" Without another word, he headed out of the bedroom, quite pleased that he'd accomplished his goal of cheering Shego up without acquiring any further bruising

The door closed silently in Drakken's wake so he missed the muttered, " Thank god for that" in response to his denigration of William Shakespeare. Still, she couldn't help but smile. She'd have had to help out with Operation That's Moronic eventually anyway if she wanted to get paid, and she'd gotten to punch him out and to top it off, he offered to help out with her problem without her having to beg or threaten him into it. While she didn't like to play the girlie girl if she could help it, she had to admit sometimes it didn't hurt that she hadn't met a man yet who could stand up to a woman's tears. Feeling better than she had in hours, Shego rose from the bed and headed into her bathroom to freshen up, after all, breaking into the Middleton Space Center almost certainly meant that she was going to run into the Princess and there was no reason for her not to look her best when she did. As much as I miss him She mused It might actually be interesting to see just how good Kimmie is without Ron watching her back.

It was just after midnight when the Operation began and so far the resistance had been lighter than expected, coming in the form of a couple of security guards armed only with flashlights and whistles, and who had given up without the faintest hint of a fight when they discovered that the intruders were eight rather imposing synthodrones and one green and black clad woman, wanted almost world wide at this point. Guess I can't really blame them for doing the smart thing and surrendering Shego mused, casting a glance at the now bound and gagged security guards. Still, it was almost disappointing, they'd managed to break in to the facility housing the rockets themselves without sign one of a certain redheaded cheerleader. " Alright boys, you know the plan lets get the rockets and get out of here," She instructed the automatons, her lips quirking into a pleased smile as they silently began their task, splitting into groups of two and heading towards the decommissioned rockets. She had to hand it to the doc, the improved synthodrones beat the hell out of his run of the mill goons. It only took two drones to lift the rockets, weighing just over a ton each, and begin to maneuver them out of the hangar and towards the waiting cargo hovercraft.

There was a crackle of static from the walkie talkie clipped to her jumpsuit at the waist, " Shego, status report….please." came Dr. Drakken's voice, sounding somewhat tinny coming from the small black box. He'd opted to stay aboard the cargo hovercraft and keep the systems prepped in case there was a need for a hasty retreat.

Pulling the walkie talkie from her waist, her smile widened into a full grin, " Looking good Dr. D.," she answered, watching as the first of the rockets made its way out of the hangar doors and headed for the waiting hovercraft's loading ramp, " oh…and please? Add an "and thank you" to that and you'll sound like Kimmie." Whatever the not so good doctor's response to the verbal jab would have been was cut off by the shattering of a skylight at the far end of the hangar as two figures crashed through it. Damn it, I knew this was going too smoothly for one of Dr. D's plans to actually work She thought.

" And just what's wrong with sounding like me, Shego?" Kim asked, straightening up and slowly approaching her long time nemesis. While the words were the standard pre-battle banter, gone was her normal confident and playful tone, replaced by a hard edge.

" Double time it boys," Shego ordered the synthodrones before pressing the transmit button on the walkie talkie, " You better have those engines ready Drakken," she said, " and we might have to make due with half of what we came for, you know who just decided to show up." Without waiting for any acknowledgement, she let both hands burst to life with plasma, incidentally destroying the walkie talkie. " What's wrong with him sounding like you, pumpkin?" she sneered, finally paying attention to the teenage heroine, " Well as much as I hate to admit it, Dr. D's not a total airhead. Unlike someone I could name, let's call her Kim Possible, he has more than one working brain cell." The look of pure outrage on the younger woman's face was almost worth sticking up for Drakken.

" You will not speak like that to Ms. Possible," commanded the second figure. He was fairly nondescript, dark hair and eyes, and wearing the all too familiar uniform of a Global Justice field agent, complete with the prerequisite air of pomposity. " Shego, you are hereby under arrest under the authority of Global Justice. You have five seconds to power down and surrender or we will be forced to use force." The young man even had the gall to look at his wristwatch for emphasis.

" Gee Kimmie," Shego drawled, sauntering slowly towards the two, " Stoppable's locked up for less than a day and you've already replaced him and here I thought I was the heartless bitch." She made a show of giving the male agent a once over and dismissing him as a threat, " I've got to say…as far as sidekicks go, you've traded way down. What's your name sport? Or has she not named you yet?"

" The name's Will Do," the agent responded, seething with barely contained rage, " and you're out of time." His fingers tensed on the controls to his watch.

Before the taser could discharge, Shego pointed a single finger in his direction, firing off a thin beam of plasma, knocking the watch from his wrist and causing it to fall to the ground a couple of feet behind him, at which point the taser finally fired, hooking into the leg of his pants, followed by a powerful charge. There was a brief moment of silence, followed by the dull thud of Agent Do's head striking the floor and bouncing once. " Oh, yea, Princess," Shego smirked, " he's a keeper. Well, he can keep his pants up at any rate…probably for the best to. I'm sure you couldn't care less about who you see with their pants down, but I've got a feeling that he's not nearly as attractive without them as Stoppable is."

" Shut up you slut," Kim screamed, rushing forward blindly, managing to just barely duck beneath Shego's outstretched arm as the villainess attempted to clothesline her. Twisting behind her nemesis, she lashed out with a kick aimed at the small of Shego's back.

The blow met only air, as Shego had thrown herself into a forward roll the moment Kim had slipped under her arm. " Awwww, did I hit a nerve Kimmie?" She taunted, coming back up to her feet and turning to face the redhead. Kim launched herself at the older woman, only to have her side step the attack and grab her legs as she passed, swinging the teen in a wide arc before letting go and watching with unmitigated glee as she sailed across the room and into the wall.

" That's all you'll be able to hit when I'm through with you," Kim growled, pushing herself back to her feet and approaching much more cautiously, " I don't know what you did to Ron, what kind of mind control you've got him under, but you're going to regret fucking with him just to get to me." To her complete shock, Shego burst out laughing.

" Pumpkin, when this whole teen hero thing doesn't work out for you, I'd suggest trying your hand at stand-up, cause you're hilarious." She paused, getting herself under control, " There are a lot of things I'll admit to regretting in my lifetime, but doing Ron will never be one of them. And trust me, it wasn't just about getting to you. I love him."

It was Kim's turn to laugh, " Love? You don't know the first thing about love. You need a heart to love." A quick handspring and she was in front of her target, throwing as quick right at Shego's head.

The raven haired woman countered, bringing her own right arm up to catch the blow and kicking out, planting her foot in Kim's midsection, causing her to drop to her knees. " Ron is my heart," she spat harshly, " He's done more for me than anyone else and unlike someone, I'm not going to do anything to break him."

" Bitch," Kim sneered, springing up and tackling Shego to the ground. " I've never hurt Ron. In fact I go out of my way to protect him., the way you do for the people you love." Straddling her intended victim's waist, she raised a fist, intending to bring it down in a swift blow and knock the other woman out.

" Oh?," Shego countered, " And just how is fucking another guy on the anniversary of your first mission protecting someone you love?" The fist paused as the words sunk in, " Unless you're trying to keep him safe from the tons of STD's you're carrying." Shego wriggled an arm free and aimed a glowing hand in front of her. " Good night sweet Princess, parting is such….a joy." With that, she let go with a full strength burst, sending Kim sailing through the air to land in a heap against the hangar's far wall. Carefully rising to her feet, Shego approached the crumpled form of her fallen foe, both hands alight with green flame. It came as no surprise to her that Kim was still conscious, they'd been doing the same dance for years and she could still count the number of times she'd knocked Kim out on only one hand. However, the teen wasn't making any real effort to get back up or continue her attack. " You know, Kim," she offered casually, " I could end this now, once and for all. It's something I've actually dreamed about for years, I've gone out of my way to keep other villains from offing you so the honor could be mine alone. And you know what?" She paused, extinguishing both hands and looking down at Kim with a mixture of pity and contempt. " Drakken's right. You think you're all that, but you're not. I'm not going to waste anymore of my life trying to measure myself against you. I've got something better to look forward to." Turning away, she headed for the entrance to the hangar without so much as a look back.

" If you double time it, we can still get the last four of those rockets," She instructed the massed synthodrones as she passed them and headed up the cargo ramp into the hovercraft. Silently and swiftly, the robots headed into the hangar to gather the remaining rockets.

Entering the cockpit, she was surprised to find that while Dr. Drakken was still seated at the controls, he hadn't bothered to key the engines up past standby. " We'll be ready to go in a minute Dr. D," she said casually plopping into the co-pilot's chair and swiveling around to face her own console, and starting the pre-flight prep of the subsidiary systems, " I just sent the boys down to get the rest of the rockets." She paused, " Gotta say, I'm surprised that you're still here." She was careful to keep her face turned away to watch his reaction out of the corner of her eye.

Drakken sputtered, busying himself with his own system check, " Ah, well…I couldn't very well leave you behind now could I…" Almost as though he was afraid she'd take the statement as some sort of admission of friendship, he hastened to add " I mean, you're the one who usually breaks me out of jail…and if you got captured, well, I'm sure it would only be a few moments, if that, before Global Justice or Kim Possible came for me." There was a beeping from his console indicating that all eight rockets had been loaded and secured and he reached out, pushing up on the throttle and taking the hovercraft into the air. " Speaking of Kim Possible," he hedged, " What happened? I thought you said she showed up? How is it that we're getting away so easily?"

Shego allowed herself a small smile at the memory of her shocked and beaten arch-nemesis, " Somehow I don't think she's going to be a problem anymore. You should have seen her Dr. D, she was trolling with some GJ dweeb. I mean you and I both know just how useless…." She trailed off as a proximity alarm began to sound. She glanced down at the console in front of her to see two blips on the radar coming up behind the hovercraft and closing fast, " Crap, I hate being wrong, Global Justice fighters coming up on our six. Time to earn my salary, hands away from the controls doc, this is where the fun begins." Without waiting to see if Drakken complied with her order, she grabbed the control yolk. It was a lot bigger than her jet, but due to Drakken's genuine gift for technology, it was just as responsive. Something she was sure the fighter jocks weren't expecting. Sparing a hand for just a moment, she pushed the throttle to the maximum and pulled back on the yolk, sending the hovercraft into a sharp climb. Unsurprisingly, the fighters followed suit, so Shego continued to pull back , turning the climb into a loop. Again, the fighters followed. " Ok, you're good," she admitted through clenched teeth, " lets see you follow this." Instead of pulling out of the loop, she killed the engine power, letting the hovercraft free fall in what amounted into a six hundred mile an hour vertical dive, laughing as the ground rushed up to meet them.

" Ah…Shego….not that I'd dream of questioning your piloting skill…mainly because I don't want to die…" Drakken stuttered, gripping the armrests of his seat tightly " but the same desire for life is forcing me to ask….shouldn't we perhaps pull up?" There was no response save more laughter from the raven haired woman, " Shego….SHEGO!"

A mere three hundred feet from slamming to the ground, Shego reengaged the engines at full throttle, rocketing forward. " And that is how it's…" her eyes widened in disbelief as the proximity sensor beeped again, indicating that the fighters were still on them, not only that, but as the increase in the volume of the proximity sensor indicated, they had the audacity to actually fire a missile at the hovercraft. " Ok, I've got a trick up my sleeve that you're not going to be familiar with." She growled, jamming a slender finger angrily down on the button that would lower the cargo bay ramp once more. " Take the controls Dr. D, just keep her level and get ready to get that cloaking shield up." Without waiting to see his response, she took off at a brisk trot to the cargo bay. Facing out into the darkened sky, the wind whipping at her raven tresses, she ignited both hands and waited until she could see the missile clearly before letting go full blast, scoring a direct hit and detonating the explosive device. The shockwave knocked her back further into the cargo bay and she as the ramp was again closing, she could only presume that Dr. Drakken had figured out her gambit. Ignoring the slight pain, she pushed herself back to her feet and returned to the cockpit. A quick glance at the proximity sensor confirmed her suspicions, the fighters had broken off pursuit and were headed away. " Alright Dr. D we've got your rockets. Now what's this about Operation Romeo and Juliet?" She hated to admit it, but her interest was piqued.

" Ah yes," Drakken grinned, rubbing his hands together, " Well…as you take great pride in reminding me, you have a no cloning clause in your contract. However," he turned to the console in front of him and with a flurry of quick keystrokes, a wireframe holographic image of a synthodrone appeared above the console, " you cannot deny that with the recent performance upgrades to the synthodrones, they almost rival your skill." He waited for her reluctant nod, " Now if we were to upgrade the appearance of a synthodrone as well…" Another flurry of keystrokes, and this time a holographic image of Shego appeared beside the synthodrone's image, before slowly merging with it, " and we have our Juliet."

A feral grin slipped across Shego's lips as the plan took hold in her mind, " Ok, I'll admit it, I'm intrigued….tell me more."


	14. Chapter 14

Bad as She Wants Me to Be

Chapter 14: Not so solitary confinement

Disclaimer: Per the usual, I own nothing but the plot. Shego, Ron, et, al. are the property of that blasted mouse. Ron's lawyer, however, is the property of Stan "The Man" Lee.

The first thing that Ron realized when he finally came to was that he was no longer in his parent's living room. It was the steel bars that met his gaze that gave it away. So I've been captured again…no big. He mused, pushing himself into a seated position as he tried to clear the last of the cobwebs from his mind I'm sure it'll only be a matter of time before KP or Rufus spring me….wait… Suddenly the events of the past day and a half slammed into him full force and it was all he could do to keep from laying back down on the cot he found himself on and curl into the fetal position Ok, so cot, large cell, gotta say getting captured by the good guys is a definite step up from getting captured by the bad guys. The thought gave him pause. " Since when did I stop considering myself to be one of the good guys?" he asked the apparently empty cell, not expecting an answer. Needless to say, he was more than a little shocked when he got one.

" I suspect that probably happened about the same time you started cavorting with a certain emerald hued vixen," came the distinctly British, and insufferably smug reply.

Awww…come on he groaned silently, There's just no way my luck could possibly be that bad Turning in the direction of the voice, his eyes confirmed that his luck, unfortunately, was that bad. Standing at the bars of the adjacent cell to his right was one of the two only other beings on the planet to possess mystical monkey powers. " You've got to be kidding me," he sighed, " I mean, putting me next to you? Isn't that against the Geneva Convention or something? You know, cruel and unusual punishment?"

" Normally," Monkey Fist replied, ignoring the not so thinly veiled insult, " I would feel compelled to disagree with you as a matter of principle. However, as we seem to be on the same side of the law these days, I suppose I can agree with you on this one particular issue." Clinging to the bars of the cell with both hands and feet, he regarded his long time nemesis carefully, pleased beyond measure by the boy's flinch at the thought of being on the same side of the law, " Unfortunately, Global Justice, despite their name, rarely takes notice of the niceties of civilized society such as the rule of law or due process unless it suits them. I've been here over six months now and they've yet to allow me to see a lawyer."

Somehow, Ron wasn't too terribly surprised. Sure, GJ was at least nominally on the side of angels, but it hadn't escaped his attention just how eager they were to take possession of whatever Doomsday devices villains had in their lairs once they had been taken into custody, or the fact that almost half of the stuff the villains stole came from Global Justice research and development labs. " Well, gee, can't imagine why they want to keep you locked up as long as possible," Ron shot back, pushing himself from his cot and pacing in frustration, " I, on the other hand, don't belong here. And we are not on the same side of the law." Even to his own ears, the denial sounded rather weak.

" Are you so sure about that, killer?" Monkey Fist grinned, " If you were anyone else, I'd actually have to thank you for offing that cretin. You've single-handedly improved the gene pool."

Ron's shoulder slumped Oh who am I kidding? He's right, I do belong here. Even if I didn't pull the trigger, I didn't save him, and heroes safe people don't they? Still, he wasn't going to give Monkey Fist the satisfaction of letting him know that the barb had actually scored, steeling his shoulders, " And just what would you know about it?" he challenged.

The grin widened, " Oh come now Stoppable, surely you aren't that dense. They keep us in these cells twenty two out of twenty four hours a day." He let himself drop from the bars and pulled himself to his full height, standing as erect as Ron had ever seen him, " And you my boy are on just about every channel, which I must say that while watching your life go down the tubes in high definition is endlessly entertaining, that's just speaking for me. You've preempted Agony County even, which should make the free exercise hour just oodles of fun for you."

Ron briefly considered reaching through the bars, grabbing the other…sort of man's orange prison jumpsuit top and pulling his head into the bars until he lost consciousness, and then let it go. Nah, I'm not going to let him get a rise out of me he decided, though he did walk over to the bars, drawing into himself and allowing the light to die in his eyes. " My life isn't going down the tubes, Monty," he said coldly, " Unlike someone I could name. I really don't belong here. But tell you what, I'll send you a banana cream pie with….absolutely nothing baked into it." He grinned just a little evilly, " but, hey, the banana part's gotta make it all better, am I right?" Without waiting for a response, he turned away and walked back to the cot and took a seat on the edge, looking anywhere but in Monkey Fist's direction.

It was all the genetically altered Englishman could do to keep from growling in frustration. He was not about to let his baser instincts take over like some common low life, " Oh really?" he queried haughtily, " Prove it."

The dare had its intended effect and Ron's head whipped back in his direction, " Prove what?" he asked.

Monkey Fist carefully hid a smirk, " Prove you don't belong here. Call the lotus blade. If you're still on the side of good and justice, it shouldn't have any problem responding and then you can use it to free yourself." He could see the boy was actually paying attention, if reluctantly. " Ron," he said, trying to keep from overwhelming the young man with false sincerity, " As much as you may not like me, and believe me the feeling is mutual, I'm telling you the truth. The second your guard is down, someone will slip in and kill you. Seriously, consider who you're surrounded by, the scum of the Earth, and then there's me, all of whom have been put here by you and Miss Possible." Noticing Ron pale, he continued, " Now consider the fact that you're here, allegedly, for the death of Senor Senior Senior's only son. Now, I'm not planning on shedding any tears over Junior's death mind you, but I'm sure that his father will. Senor Senior Senior may be a doddering old fool most of the time, but he has three things going in his favor: he was a devoted father, he is filthy rich, and he has no compunctions about being cruel. Do you really think that even with your skill in Tai shing pec quar, that you'll last more than a week?"

So a sarcastic side of his brain, which sounded surprisingly like Shego on a bad day piped up This is what a lifetime of beatings from the jocks in the locker room at school has been building up to. I guess everything does happen for a reason. Still, he had to admit that the thought of escape was appealing; it didn't seem to go any harder for the villains who escaped when they were inevitably captured again, how bad could it possibly be? " No dice, Monkey Fist," Ron said defiantly, " I'm here now, and maybe that's where I'm supposed to be, maybe not. We'll see how it goes, but I'm not going to dishonor the lotus blade by even trying to use it to escape." He allowed himself a small grin, " besides, as you mentioned, damn near everyone here is here because I helped put them here. I think I'm going to last more than a week, if I'm here that long to begin with."

Despite himself, Monkey Fist had to admit he was impressed by Ron's defiance. Who'd have thought that Stoppable would actually develop a backbone at any point in his otherwise pathetic existence. Perhaps I've been going about this all wrong…if he does last more than a week, perhaps I should consider taking him on as an apprentice Chasing away a new vision of a world bowing before the Master of Tai shing pec quar and his new apprentice, he took a new approach to breaking the younger man's will. " Oh, you're that sure that Shego is going to rescue you, are you?" He smirked, " So young, so naïve. Come now Ronald, don't you realize that she was just using you in order to break up your little team? Now with you locked up, there's nothing to stop her and Dr. Drakken from taking over the world…well except for Drakken himself."

Ron felt an icy cold hand clench his heart; he had to admit that the thought had occurred to him before, though to hear someone else actually give voice to one of his darkest fears wasn't the most pleasant feeling in the world. " You don't know what the hell you're talking about, Monty" the last word dripping with as much disdain as he could manage.

Monkey Fist's grin widened, " Oh don't I? The news media have seized much more so on the fact that you and Shego were registered for the honeymoon suite than Senor Senior Junior's death." He gave a short laugh, " You obviously aren't familiar with Shego's reputation in the villain community. She doesn't do love, Stoppable, though there are some things she does very…very…well. You know…once I engineer my own escape, maybe I'll pay her a visit and show her some…how do you kids put it these days? Oh yes, mad monkey love. I don't need to point out the fact that I'm more than well enough endowed, do I?" The verbal jab had the intended result.

Almost faster than the eye could follow, Ron was at the bars doing his best to reach through and strangle his long time adversary, " Shut the hell up freak…you say one more thing about her and I'll ….I'll…" the words trailed off into a guttural growl.

Fortunately for the sake of his neck, both literal and figurative, Monkey Fist had anticipated the attack and danced back out of reach. Impressive he mused, watching as the younger man continued raging against he bars Such anger, such passion. If only I could find a way to channel it to my own ends. Provided I can keep him from succeeding in killing me first " You'll what, Stoppable? Kill me? Maybe you belong here more than you think, killer." He let out a quiet breath as he watched the fire almost immediately leave Ron's eyes to be replaced by a haunted, forlorn look.

Ron backed away from the bars, looking at his hands as though they belonged to someone else and made his way back to the cot, trying not to think about what he'd almost did. " First wanting to beat the crap out of Monkey boy…now trying to beat the crap out of another…Monkey boy…hmmm…too many monkeys in my life." He muttered. Despite his attempts at levity, he knew he had a serious problem on his hands. Losing control isn't going to help anything he reminded himself, taking a deep breath Just got to keep Monkey Fist from getting under my skin. I've been in worse situations before…not that I can think of any off hand. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, letting a deep calm settle over his mind. Unfortunately, before he could work his way into a satisfactorily relaxing meditation, a sharp clanging against the cell bars snapped his eyes open. " Aww…come on Monkey Fist" he groaned, glancing towards his right, " even you have to respect a man's right to meditate." To his surprise, his simian foe wasn't the source of the sound, and in fact seemed to be meditating himself, seated in full lotus position on his own cot.

" Oh, I do," Monkey Fist replied smugly, his eyes remaining closed, " I believe that particular tolling of the bells is for thee."

Ron turned his attention to the front of the cell, finally taking notice of the rather annoyed, large and heavily armed Global Justice guard tapping his foot impatiently. " Enough wasting time with the other inmates for now Stoppable, you'll have plenty of time to make friends and influence people during the ten to fifteen years you're going to spend here." The guard smiled cruelly, " Right now you have some questions to answer. Now move it."

Ron sighed and rose off the cot slowly. Somehow he had a feeling he should have known that there'd be questions. " Noo…they couldn't just lock me up and throw away the key," he muttered heading for the cell door, " Not while I'm still useful." Of course, just because they had some questions for him didn't mean he had to give them the answers they wanted, even if he knew what they were. " Oh, and while we're on the subject of friends," he said cheerfully stepping up to the cell door under the guard's watchful eye, " Anyone with opposable thumbs and toes…definitely not my friend." The door slid open with the faintest whisper of sound and he stepped through, making sure to keep his hands at his side. You know, I've never credited GJ with an over abundance of intelligence, shouldn't they have me in cuffs or something? I mean come on, they studied me for the whole "Ron factor" thing, they can't honestly think I'm not a threat can they? That's just insulting. he mused quietly. " Seeing as you seem to have just the opposable thumbs however, maybe you wouldn't mind being a pal and telling me why I'm not handcuffed….ahhh…I don't believe I got your name." Ron offered with a slightly strained smile.

The guard simply tilted his head down the cell lined corridor, indicating that Ron should go ahead of him. " The name's Tiny," the guard replied gruffly as they headed towards the interrogation rooms, " and I'm not your pal, your buddy or whatever other lame ass idea you've picked up by watching prison movies on cable kid. So don't think we're going to bond and I'm going to look out for you during free exercise time. As for the handcuffs, I have my orders from Dr. Director herself, she somehow doesn't believe you'd be stupid enough to try escaping or attacking anyone. Me…" he paused and glared down at the smaller blond man, " I'm kinda hoping you'd try something anyway."

Ron gulped and fought the urge to rub at the back of his neck nervously, " So…Tiny, huh?" he asked with all the false cheer he could inject into his voice, " You know that's kind of funny considering you're not really that small…" he trailed off, noticing the glare he was receiving seriously amp up in intensity, " but you've probably heard that all your life, no need for me to beat a dead horse. Anyway, I didn't exactly expect us to become best buddies or anything…I'm not unfamiliar with the captive, captor relationship dynamic you know. I've got to ask though, what's with the serious mad on you seem to have for me?"

There was an extremely uncomfortable pause as they continued down the corridor before the guard answered, his voice dripping with venom. " You want to know why I'm mad? Fine. I've got a little brother in high school in Upperton. Good kid, not necessarily the brightest or the most popular, but he doesn't care, and you know why?" he stopped walking and waited for Ron to turn and face him before continuing, " Because of you Stoppable. Kim Possible may be the one who gets all the press, but he never forgot that you were the other half of Team Possible, off saving the world…just your average ordinary guy and you helped save the world. Made him feel better about not always having to be the best or do what people expected of him. You were his hero and here you go and prove that you're not a hero at all." He motioned for Ron to turn back around and continue on their way, " So, I'm begging you Stoppable, just try and do something stupid while you're here, give me a chance to show you what I really think about phonies like you."

For once in his life, Ron was actually speechless. Somehow he didn't think an apology would be the right move right now, even if the guard had seemed like he'd accept one in the first place. While the guards words had hit a nerve, he couldn't deny the spark of anger they triggered inside of him. I never asked to be anyone's hero he rationalized That was Kimmie's thing, basking in the limelight while acting like it wasn't any big deal. I'm just the guy who wanted to watch his friends back, and maybe every now and then make sure the world wasn't destroyed or taken over. Never said I was a hero, hell half the time I was a barely adequate distraction. The rationalization did little to assuage the feeling of guilt however, that he'd let the kid down, even though they'd never met. He was almost relieved when they finally got to the interrogation room, if for no other reason than it meant he wouldn't have to be alone with the seriously pissed off guard.

" I'll be watching you Stoppable," Tiny growled close to Ron's ear as he keyed for the door to open before gesturing for Ron to head in, " and believe me, the second you step out of line, I'm going to be there to take you down."

Ron was sorely tempted to rise to the guard's bait, maybe point out that even Kim Possible hadn't been able to take him down, but there wouldn't be anything to be gained by antagonizing the guard; so he simply responded with a goofy grin and a wave as though he hadn't a care in the world. Gee…this just gets better and better he thought as the door slid shut behind him. Fortunately it appeared that for all of Monkey Fist's talk about how Global Justice didn't always care for the rule of law, it appeared that the interrogation room was just that, there certainly didn't seem to be any of the fun torture devices present that the villains seemed to love so much. In fact the room was rather plain, a long table with a single chair at one end and two chairs at the other. " Guess I'm early for once," he muttered, walking to the far end of the table and taking the single seat. " Now if I could only pull this off at school, maybe my grades wouldn't be what they are" He paused, " Of course, somehow I can't imagine Middleton High would want me back after this."

The door to the interrogation room once again slid open and in walked Dr. Director, holding a thick manila folder and Kim Possible who had an empty and broken look in her eyes as she gazed at her long time friend before taking a seat beside the head of Global Justice. " Ronald," Doctor Director said formally, " I must say that I'm very disappointed in you." She set the folder down on the table in front of her and frowned at the young blond, " So much potential and this is how you choose to use it."

Ron did his best not to squirm in his chair; to the best of his knowledge, Doctor Director didn't have any children of her own, and yet somehow she was still able to make him feel like his mother did when she was disappointed in him. " Yea well….once you start down the dark path and all that jazz ," he quipped easily. The shock on the Global Justice chief's face was surpassed only by his own surprise at the words spilling from his lips, though he carefully schooled his face so it wouldn't show. Ok…I've definitely spent too much time with Sheena he thought Not that it's a bad thing. Though I may want to watch my mouth. And I'm definitely going to have to keep that line in mind for the next time Yori or Master Sensei mention my being the Chosen One…Yori might get the reference at least…oops..better keep my head in the game

" Ron!," Kim shouted, slapping both hands down angrily on the table, " This isn't a joking matter. You killed a man," she looked away and continued softly, bitterly, " and then there's whatever you had going on with that slut Shego." Try as she might, she just couldn't wrap her mind around the fact that he'd rather spend time in her arch nemesis's bed than her own."

Ron stilled, his hands clenching into fists and unclenching convulsively in his lap. " You know KP," he said in a tone devoid of any emotion, " I'd really rather you didn't talk about the woman I love like that. It tends to upset me." He couldn't help but notice the two women had totally opposite reactions to that particular revelation. Dr. Director tensed just noticeably, picking up on the thinly veiled threat, whereas Kim leaned back in her chair looking for all the world like someone had just landed a solid blow to her gut. " As for me killing a man...I'm afraid you're mistaken. I didn't kill him. I might not have saved him, not for a lack of trying, but I didn't kill him." It was the truth, factually anyway, though it didn't stop him from feeling responsible for it.

It was Kim who responded first, " What the hell are you talking about Ron? The police found a gun in that suite with you finger prints on it and Junior had a bullet hold in his chest when he came out of that window. So how is it that you didn't kill him?" With her whole attention focused on Ron, she failed to notice the hardening of Dr. Director's expression.

Ron, however, didn't miss the head of GJ's reaction. She knows that I didn't shoot Junior he realized suddenly, his eyes sliding to the folder on the table in front of her Probably has it all in that little report of hers too. Not even Global Justice's agents are so inept as to bungle that. She knows….and she's still keeping me here He quickly quashed the anger rising in him at the realization. " What I mean Kim," he said coolly," " Is that I didn't kill anyone. That gun you're so quick to mention with my prints on it? I got it under the bed to keep one of the two guys that Junior brought in to force Shego into marrying him from getting it into his hot little hands again. That bullet in Junior's chest…came from his own gun, as I'm pretty sure the ballistics report will confirm. It was a ricochet. He was trying to shoot Shego and I put myself between her and the bullets…he was firing pretty wildly…one of them must have bounced back and struck him." Ok so he was stretching the truth a little, but he didn't want Global Justice knowing he had access to a magical weapon, he had a feeling that the tests they'd run when they were researching the "Ron factor" would look like a day a the beach in comparison. " After that…he just backed up and fell out of the window."

" Is that true, Dr. Director?" Kim whispered in shock turning to face the older woman, " Is Ron really innocent?" It was almost too much to hope for. If Ron's innocent, then there's still hope for him. Or maybe even hope for us.

Dr. Betty Director's frown deepened, for all of Possible's good qualities she still had far too much innocence about the way the world really worked Damn, the boy just had to go and develop a backbone. I've got to handle this carefully. Turning slightly towards the teenaged heroine, " I've only recently been able to read the full report that our agents put together Kimberly," She said tersely, she sighed in defeat as she noticed the beginnings of the infamous Puppy Dog Pout, " but from the preliminary findings it would appear that Ron is quite correct. The only gun found in the room to match what ballistics pulled from the bullet in Senor Senior Junior's wound had his finger prints on it, not Ron's. However, I wouldn't say he's completely innocent. After all, he is guilty of at the very least aiding and abetting a known felon, and depending on what Mr. Stoppable decides to tell us, he may even be an accessory to murder." The hope dimmed in the young red head's green eyes and Dr. Director turned her attention to the young man seated at the far side of the table. " I don't need to point out that things will go immeasurably easier for you if you decide to cooperate with us, do I Ronald?" She slid the manila folder across the table to him, amazingly not spilling any of the contents in the process.

" What's that?" he asked simply, not bothering to make a move to open the folder.

She sighed, clasping her hands tightly in front of her on the table. Of course he can't just cooperate can he? " That, Ronald, is a copy of the ballistics and coroner's report and the ballistics report. The top half anyway," she held up a hand to stave off the questions she could see forming in the young man's brown eyes, " and no, it's not normal for Global Justice to show a suspect the evidence we have. The lower half is a copy of the deal we'd like to offer you. We're willing to offer you a full pardon regarding Junior's death and state publicly that you were operating under the authority of Global Justice as a deep cover operative at the time, working to retrieve Dr. Bortel's mood rose bush."

" Wait," Kim exclaimed turning to face Doctor Director fully, " You knew about Junior's steeling Dr. Bortel's roses?"

Dr. Director sighed and fought the urge slap her hand into her forehead, " Kimberly," she began, as if speaking to a child, " you're going to come to learn if you sign on with us one day, there are very few things that go on in the villainous community that Global Justice is not aware of. The comings and goings of a relative minor leaguer like Senor Senior Junior are generally monitored but not acted on. More often than not he'll end up foiling himself…and for those times when he doesn't, that's where you come in. The field experience you've gained in the past few years relatively on your own is more than most agents get the course of their training. I can assure you that if you decide to sign on with us, after college of course, that you'd start in a command position. Who knows, perhaps you can even take over from me some day." Noting the stars beginning to gleam in the young redhead's eyes, she turned her attention to Ron. " The same offer would of course apply to you as well Ronald. You've certainly held your own against the minor league nuisances…and from the reports, you may even be able to help us nail down a major player…"

" Shego," Ron finished, coldly, nodding his head in understanding. " You want me to turn on her, don't you?"

Before Dr. Director could respond, the door to the interrogation room opened to reveal Tiny, looking no happier than when Ron had left him. " Doctor Director, Ma'am. You're needed in the control room for a moment. There's been a…development." The last was said with a definite glare in Ron's direction.

" We'll continue this when I return Ronald," She said, rising from her chair and heading at a brisk pace towards the door. " Kimberly, please keep Ronald company until I get back. I don't think it'll be too long." Knowing without having to look that her request would be obeyed, Doctor Director followed Tiny from the room, the door sliding shut in her wake.

There was silence for a moment after the closing of the door, the two longtime friends gazing at each other from opposite sides of the table. It was Kim who broke the silence, " So…you got me pretty good back at your place Ron…before Will zapped you that is."

Through strength of will alone, Ron managed to keep his jaw from dropping. Granted, she's not hitting on me, which is a plus. But is this what small talk is going to be like for us from now on? He tried a tentative smile, " You're no slouch yourself, you know." He paused, " KP….about before…that's not how I wanted you to find out."

Kim sighed, " How did you want me to find out Ron? When I got a green and black wedding invitation? When the baby announcements came out? Or were you planning on stabbing me in the back before then?" She didn't want to be mad at him, she wasn't good at it, but she couldn't forget the news that he had spent the night with her greatest foe. What is it about her that he can't see in me? She wondered I mean if he's into the whole bad girl thing, he could have just told me. Maybe I should let him know that. She quickly quashed the thought, though she had to admit that he was a lot better looking this time through with the evil thing than during his brief stint as Zorpox.

Ron looked just about everywhere than at Kim, rubbing the back of his neck nervously, " Ok…so I hadn't really worked that part out yet. I was kind of waiting to see where things went."

Despite herself, Kim couldn't help but smile. Same old Ron, rushing into things without thinking. Maybe I can bring him back to the good side. Rising from her seat, she walked down the length of the table and leaned against it, " Ron, look at me," she waited for him to look up before continuing, " I'll admit I wasn't happy to find out about you and Shego, and I probably could have handled it better than attacking you. I mean, you were there for me through that thing with Josh and Bonnie, and I know that couldn't have been easy for you. I think that's why I've been throwing myself at you so hard, I was afraid of losing you."

Ron felt his lips tug into a small, but sincere, smile " KP, you couldn't lose me. I mean no matter what life holds, if you needed me I'd be there for you, you know all you'd have to do was call."

Kim felt her heart fill with joy at his words. You have no idea how much I need you Ron…but one day you're going to find out. I just need to take my time, and maybe you'll realize that you need me too. She cast a glance back towards the door briefly, wondering just what could have pulled Dr. Director away from such an important interview. She couldn't bring herself to think of it as an interrogation. " We make quite the pair, don't we?" She asked cheerily, " No matter what stupid choices we make in our love lives we're always there for each other." She failed to notice the smile slipping from Ron's lips and his eyes hardening. " So what do you say, when Dr. Director comes back you take the deal and we get back to the way things were?"

Ron fought the urge to slam his head into the table, or alternately, his fist into his old friend. She may have made a stupid choice in her love life. The only mistake I've made was thinking there was the hope for something between us. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly before answering, " I didn't make a stupid mistake with Shego. Hell, I can't think of a single thing I'd do differently when it comes to her." He leaned back in his seat and watched her expression as the words finally sunk in. And five, four, three, two… Right on cue, Kim exploded.

" What do you mean you didn't make a stupid mistake? It's Shego!" She shouted, rising to her feet and slipping unconsciously into a fighting stance. " I can't imagine a bigger mistake except thinking that she actually feels anything for you, or that she's going to come rescue you." Years of friendship allowed Kim to read him like a book, and right now what she was reading was worse than school assigned reading. " You can't tell me you actually think she cares about you."

Ron stood up with enough force to send the chair sliding across the room and into the wall. " KP, stop now, you're seriously close to crossing a line that neither one of us wants you to cross." It was all he could do to keep his hands uncurled at his sides.

" I'd say she's well across it," came an unfamiliar voice from the entrance to the room. Both Kim and Ron turned to the sound of the voice to see Dr. Director standing in the doorway with a man who appeared to be in his early thirties with sandy brown hair, wearing red tinted glasses and a black suit. What stood out the most however, was the collapsible walking stick the stranger held in his right hand.

" Dr. Director," Kim said hastily, straightening up and doing her best to relax, " We were just discussing the deal you'd offered Ron here…who's this?" The suit alone indicated that he wasn't a Global Justice agent, but it was the walking stick that drew her gaze. Oh God, this is going to be just like when I met Felix, isn't it? came the horrified thought. Already she could feel a blush creeping up her neck and towards her cheeks.

" Matthew Murdock," the stranger replied, easily making his way across the room, and offering her his hand, " and you're Kim Possible." Shaking her hand firmly, he smiled, " I hear you're something of a dare devil, sky diving, fighting super villains, saving the world. All that and you manage to still find time for classes. It's an honor."

The blush finally succeeded in making its way to her cheeks, " It's a pleasure to meet you as well Mr. Murdock," she replied, the manners drilled into her by her parents making an appearance, " And I don't mean to sound rude, but why are you here?"

Matthew smirked, " Oh right. I'm with Nelson and Murdock. I'll be representing Mr. Stoppable at trial." He reached into his jacket pocket and retrieved a gold embossed business card and handed it to her before walking over to the stunned Ron and extending his hand. " I've heard a good deal about you as well Mr. Stoppable."

Ron's brain finally started to process information again and he mechanically shook the proffered hand. " But…I didn't hire a lawyer," he managed, " I mean I was kind of hoping for the court appointed one because while I still get the occasional Naco royalty check, my parents made sure that they'd go into a trust that I can't access until I graduate from high school…something about them wanting to make sure I still had some money when it came time for college…and even if they weren't on a cruise right now, I can't imagine they'd let me break into it for my defense. Not after what I've done to the family name with all this."

Matthew let the words sink in slowly as he considered the younger man carefully. Heart rate's slow and steady he mused The kid's not lying, what's more, given the pain in his voice, he honestly thinks he's done something unforgivable. Releasing Ron's hand he turned so that he and Ron were both facing in the direction of Kim and Doctor Director. " Actually, Mr. Stoppable," he began, " every now and then I like to take a case on a pro bono basis to keep me honest. Not only is this one of those cases, but I got a call from an acquaintance of an old" He paused, " friend of sorts who had heard that you might need a good lawyer, so he gave me a call." He lowered his voice just enough so that Ron alone would be able to hear, " This acquaintance happens to live in Japan."

" Oh!," Ron exclaimed as the meaning sunk in, " Well, it's not like I'm going to turn down help when it's being offered to me. I mean I haven't even been told my rights yet. If I didn't watch " Feds" on a regular basis, I wouldn't even know about the court appointed lawyer thing."

The sudden increase in Doctor Director's heart rate confirmed it. " Is that true Betty?" Matthew asked, not bothering to wait for a response, " He wasn't read his rights? Nick would be so disappointed in you. And of course, you realize that you're in for a fight if you want to get anything Mr. Stoppable her has told you admitted as evidence into a courtroom. Now, if you and Ms. Possible wouldn't mind, I'd like to discuss his defense. Oh, and that deal I heard Ms. Possible mention, you can consider it off the table, at least until Mr. Stoppable and I have had a chance to discuss it." He waited until Dr. Director and Kim had almost reached the door before adding, as though it were an after thought, " I'm assuming that I don't need to remind you that having any recording devices trained on this room while Mr. Stoppable and I have our little chat would be a violation of Attorney Client Privilege." As the door slid closed behind the two women, and the footsteps receded in the distance, he allowed himself a small smile before making his way over to a chair and bringing it back over to where Ron still stood in shock. That was fun. Fury doesn't react nearly as well.

Slowly, Ron came back to his senses and retrieved his chair from where it had struck the wall and brought it back to the table, carefully eyeing his newfound attorney, " So, Mr. Murdock…I'm guessing this acquaintance of a friend you mentioned runs a certain school in Japan?" he hedged cautiously as he lowered himself back into the seat. Despite, or perhaps because of, his relationship with Global Justice, he wasn't positive that Dr. Director wouldn't make sure the room was monitored in one way or another and he didn't want to reveal too much. He waited until the lawyer nodded silently, " So, are you an alumnus of said school?"

Matthew smiled again, even without his enhanced senses he would have been able to pick up on the young man's nervousness, " Not exactly. I have a friend who travels in the same circles as the head of a certain school. Apparently the head of said school had heard I'm…and this is a direct quote… "not too much of a slouch of a lawyer" and when he heard that one of his most promising pupils was in trouble with the law, he gave me a call."

Ron paused, he had to admit it sounded like the kind of thing that Master Sensei would do for him…and, there was something about the lawyer that put him at ease. " Look, Mr. Murdock. I appreciate the offer, but let's face it…this is where I was heading. Maybe it's where I belong."

Matthew leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs and folding his hands just under his chin, regarding Ron silently for a moment, " First of all, it's Matt. Mr. Murdock makes me feel old. Secondly, why on earth do you think you might belong here? I reviewed the case against you on the flight here from New York. You're not a killer Mr. Stoppable."

Ron sighed, leaning back in the chair, " No…you're right. I'm not a killer. But they're right. I was associating with a known felon, hell…even after I knew she committed a crime I couldn't bring myself to turn her in. I'm just as guilty as she is because I didn't do anything to stop her. And it's Ron, not Mr. Stoppable. Mr. Stoppable is my father…of course when he finds out about all this, you can refer to me as the late Mr. Stoppable…say, you don't happen to do estate planning do you?"

Matt allowed himself a small chuckle at Ron's attempt to get off the topic at hand, " I don't think it's quite that serious Ron…and in answer to your question, no, I don't. I always thought it would be a little morbid to spend all my time with people getting ready for death. You don't mind if I take off my jacket, do you? It's just a little warm in here." Without waiting for a response, he took off his jacket and laid it on the table. Turning serious, he started, " You're right, you've associated with a known felon and you didn't turn her in. However, other than that you have absolutely no criminal record. It's a first time offense and you have a history of being on the right side of the law. I think we can probably get you off with a warning at the most. It'd be hard to find a jury who's more sympathetic to someone who's attempted to take over the world than to a hero who's saved it a time or two. There are more people out there than you know who know who you are and appreciate what you do. After all, it's not like you hide your identity behind a mask."

Ron stifled a laugh Must not tell him about my time as the Fearless Ferret…not that he'd believe me anyway. I mean come on skulking around alleys in an outlandish costume looking for crime? Seriously, who does that? " I appreciate the complement Mr…err.. Matt. But I'm not the hero…KP is…I'm just the distraction."

If it hadn't been for the years of law school and his experience as a trial lawyer, Matt had the distinct impression that he'd have to pick his jaw up off the floor, all of his senses were once again telling him that Ron honestly felt that way about himself. Ok, I'll admit it…maybe that Master Sensei guy was right. Stoppable really could use someone in his corner right now he thought. " Come on Ron," he said softly, " If you were just a distraction, Global Justice wouldn't be taking this kind of interest in you. They'd leave it to the locals." Sensing Ron's skepticism, he continued, " The Nick, I mentioned that would be disappointed in Dr. Director? That would be Nick Fury, S.H.I.E.L.D's top agent…and one of the brains behind the formation of Global Justice. It's a rather closely kept secret that Global Justice was initially a spin off of one of S.H.I. E.L.D's early programs designed to keep an eye on smaller or localized threats to the world. Now I'm not saying they consider you a threat to the world, but I don't think they consider you just a distraction either." They sat in silence for a few moments before Matt continued, " Look…if Dr. Director is anything like her mentor Colonel Fury, and judging by the eye patch I'd say that's a definite yes, we're probably not going to get much more time to talk today. Why don't you tell me about this deal they're offering you?"

Ron nodded, wondering just what kind of information his lawyer was privy to, after all, not even Wade had been aware, as far as Ron knew, of the connection between GJ and S.H.I.E.L.D. " Essentially, it boils down to this. They're offering me a clean slate as far as the law is concerned, even going so far as to say I was working for them at the time that things went down. If I understand the offer correctly, GJ is even considering making the job portion of it legit after college, same as for KP."

" Sounds pretty good, I'll admit." Matt agreed sagely, " Better than a lot of the deals I've heard before. So I just have to ask, what is it that they want in return?"

Ron's heart thundered in his chest and he dropped his eyes to his hands, clasping them tightly in his lap. " Something I couldn't…something I can't give them."

Matt knew he had to tread lightly, things had been going more smoothly than some of his previous cases so far, but all things considered, he was still dealing with a teenager and more than likely, all of the volatility that entailed. " What would that be Ron?" he asked as neutrally as possible.

" Shego," Ron said finally, " They wanted me to turn her in to Global Justice…I just couldn't do it." He dropped unclasped his hands and dropped his head into them. " I don't expect you to understand…but…" He trailed off into a heavy sigh.

Matt hid a small smile, the answer hadn't actually surprised him. Once he'd decided to take the case, he'd called in one of the few favors Nick Fury owed him to pull all the information he could from the S.H.I.E.L.D data base regarding the young villainess. There wasn't much. She'd apparently made her world debut eight years ago in the company of four other youths as a hero in a mid-sized, Midwestern metropolis he'd never heard of, Go City by name. While the exact when and how her powers had developed was still something of a mystery, analysis of the medical work ups done by various prison doctors had indicated that her body was suffused with a form of cosmic radiation, not unlike that which had empowered the Fantastic Four. The files had also indicated that Team Go, as the five youths called themselves, didn't do a half bad job of protecting the city, nowhere as effective as the Avengers on either coast, but then they'd never faced the same level of threats. By all indications, she had a promising career ahead of her, only to leave the group for unspecified reasons after three years. She'd then dropped off the radar, presumably falling in with the criminal element and perfecting her martial arts and thieving skills, before reappearing on the scene as the henchwoman of one Dr. Drakken, probably one of the worst so called supervillains in history, and not in that he was terribly effective. " You'd be surprised, Ron," he replied, " I wouldn't say that I'm immune to the charms of a bad girl myself…."

Ron's jaw went slack, " Wha…what do you mean? No…wait, I don't want to know." He paused, lifting his head to regard the lawyer with a new air of respect, " So, you understand why I can't take the deal?"

Matt nodded, " Ron, if it makes you compromise your principles, I wouldn't call it much of a deal. You'd be free sure, but if you couldn't love we yourself, how free is that?" His ears picked up on the sound of footsteps heading back towards the interrogation room and he retrieved his jacket from the table and slipped it back on. " Personally Ron, I think that we can forego the deal and still get you out with just a warning, especially if we make the fact that your rights have been violated by Global Justice one of the strong points of our defense. It's funny how the public gets behind the little guy when they hear the phrase civil rights violation."

For the first time since he'd woken up in his cell, Ron let himself feel genuinely hopeful. " Imagine that," he chuckled. The door to the interrogation room slid open to reveal Kim and Dr. Director, and Ron schooled his face into a serious expression, " Hey KP, Dr. Director." He knew that things were still fairly grim, but he wouldn't let it get him down like it had been, the talk with Matt had done him a world of good. Wouldn't surprise me if that was the whole reason Master Sensei asked him to be my lawyer in the first place.

" Ronald," Doctor Director replied professionally, before adding in a much icier tone, " Mr. Murdock. I trust your discussion went well. Have you considered our offer?"

Matt nodded, rising to his feet and turning to face the head of Global Justice, " We have. And it is my client's informed decision to reject the offer and take his chances at trial." He turned slightly to address Ron, " Mr. Stoppable, it's been a pleasure. I'll be back in touch once I've been able to secure a court date." With that he took his walking stick and headed for the door, pausing as he drew parallel with Dr. Director, " Oh, and Betty? If I get the slightest hint that you're doing anything to delay that trial, not only will I get you charged with obstruction of justice so fast it makes your head spin. I'll help Mr. Stoppable sue Global Justice for violating his constitutional rights for so much you'll be lucky to have enough funding left to pay for the pen you'll be signing the settlement check with. Don't worry about me. I can find my own way out." He was almost to the door when he was stopped by Ron's voice.

" Hey Ma…Mr. Murdock," Ron called, waiting until the lawyer's head turned back slightly, " I know you said you're taking this one pro bono…but tell you what, I've still got a little pull with the corporate offices with Bueno Nacho. I could probably get your firm free food at any Bueno Nacho nationwide."

It was all he could do not to laugh, and he allowed himself a small smile all the same, " I appreciate it Mr. Stoppable," he replied, " If for no other reason than it'll make my partner Foggy's head explode that I had a meeting with creator of the Naco and I'll be the one representing him at trial. He could probably live at Bueno Nacho if not for court." With that, he turned and headed back out the door.

The proverbial pin drop would have been thunderous in the silence filling the room in Murdock's wake. " Well Ronald," Dr. Director said, an air of extreme disappointment in her voice, " I guess we have nothing further to discuss today. A shame." She turned slightly to face her red headed protégé, " Kimberly, would you please escort him back to his cell. We're done here." Without another word, she retrieved her folder from the table, then turned smartly on her heel and strode out of the room.

" Come on Ron," Kim said softly, " Please just come on…I don't want this to be any harder than it already is." Once again she could feel her heart breaking. If I could never lose you, how am I supposed to keep you? Thankfully, Ron didn't seem as eager for a fight as he had before the talk with the lawyer and he simply rose to his feet and headed for the door, leaving her to catch up. As they proceeded down the cell lined hallway, Kim found herself stealing sideways glances at her old friend. This can't be the way things are supposed to end up she thought morosely We're the good guys. We're supposed to get the happy ending and ride off into the sunset together. They were almost back at Ron's cell when Kim put her hand on Ron's arm and brought them to a stop. " Ron…I'm not going to ask you to change your mind right now about the deal. I know emotions are running high for everyone…but at least think about what you have to lose by continuing on the path you're taking." She paused and rose up on her toes to place a soft kiss on his cheek, " And maybe consider what you could gain by taking a different path." She didn't really expect a response, and she didn't get one. They walked the rest of the way to Ron's cell in silence and once he was inside she locked the door and walked away, head hanging just a bit, leaving behind an oddly contemplative Ron Stoppable.


	15. Chapter 15

Bad as She Wants Me to Be

Chapter 15: Just like Romeo and Juliet?

Author: RoguesKnight

Disclaimer: You know the drill, the toys I'm playing with do not belong to me. Fortunately, the kind folks at Disney and Marvel are nice enough to let me play with them anyway.

Dedication: It occurred to me just moments after posting the last chapter, that I had forgotten to put this in there. So dedicated to my wonderful reviewers, you guys keep me going. Also dedicated to my loving, wonderful, sweet, caring wife…who'll probably kill me for all the previous adjectives. Here's to life on the edge.

It had been two days since all hell had broken loose and unfortunately, the media was showing no signs whatsoever of getting over it and moving on to the next momentary distraction. Even the theft of the experimental rockets from the Middleton Space Center hadn't been more than a momentary blurb, which was both good and bad. Good for Dr. Drakken's lame ass scheme, bad for Shego's notoriously infinitesimal patience. Oh for the love of god! She fumed, lounging despondently in Dr. Drakken's favorite leather chair in front of the big screen TV in the lair If one more pop psychologist goes on and on about my relationship with Stoppable being a desperate cry for attention I'm going to rethink my no killing policy Unfortunately, god, the fates, karma, whatever you wanted to call it seemed to be against her. Every other channel it seemed was all Ron and Shego drama, all the time. " Oh, come on," she growled, " Isn't there something else on? Anywhere? This is worse than a State of the Union Address." She continued to flip through the channels, the button pressing becoming increasingly angry until she actually drove her finger through the thin plastic casing of the remote. Fate, it seemed, decided to take pity on her, if only in sparing her the need to get up and change the channel manually. " Well…this has promise," she mused, sitting up a little straighter as the words Cinemax After Dark drifted across the screen.

" Coming soon," intoned a sensual, smoky, female voice, " a Cinemax After Dark original motion picture." The screen showed to show a somewhat lanky, freckled, young blond man dressed casually walking down the halls of a school, " He was a teen hero." The screen changed again to show an all too familiar female form wrapped in a green and black uniform, " She was a dangerous outlaw." Another change, this time to show the young man and the "dangerous outlaw" at each other's throats. " Their love," the voice continued, " was UnStoppable." The pair went from fighting, to a smoldering kiss. Whatever else was to follow would remain unknown, as the screen was shattered by the already broken remote control.

" Damn it!" Shego screamed, pushing herself from her seat and firing two bolts of plasma into the shattered screen. She was known for her temper, but rarely had she been this livid. It didn't bode well for the rest of the lair. " How dare they?" She glared at the smoldering remains of the television, daring it to respond. " Do they think that being a couple of hundred miles away gives them the right to mock me? Do they not know who they're fucking with?" She wanted to scream. Really, really, wanted to scream. Not words, but something raw and primal, she could feel the pain and frustration welling in her chest before finally escaping through her throat. The resulting sound was like nothing heard before throughout history.

It was enough to draw Dr. Drakken out from the depths of the lair. Skidding to a stop quietly, he took in the devastation of the break room and was immediately struck by two things. The first was that his prized leather chair was still in one piece. The second, and more poignant, was the gulf of difference in experience between him and the young woman before him. Things may have not have worked out between him and Ann Believable in his college days, or more recently with DNAmy, but for the first time, he got an inkling of the depth of Shego's feelings for the buffoon, and he knew without a doubt that he'd never known that kind of love. It made him wonder just what it was that he'd missed out on. Best not to dwell on that he mused with a soft sigh We can't change the past…and it's not going to help with the present….hmmm….change the past….perhaps I can build a time travel device…whoop…she's figured out I'm here, better put that one on a back burner. " Shego!" He barked, trying to sound as outraged as he would have a mere few days ago, " That is completely unacceptable behavior! I mean really, if you must destroy something around here, feel free to take it out on the hired help!"

There was a startled "eep!" from behind Dr. Drakken followed by the sound of rapidly retreating feet, causing him to turn towards the sound.

" Bah!," He continued, " The point is that that TV was barely out of the box. I'd barely had the time to break it in…and now…" He sobbed mock dramatically " Cut down it the prime of its life. Of course its replacement is coming out of your paycheck!"

First Ron, now Dr. D developing a spine around me? Shego wondered in awe I may just have to go beat up on the goons just to keep the proper "Fear of Shego" level around here Still she had to give him credit, it took some definite courage to stand up to her, let alone to threaten her pay. " Ah, you sure about that sport?" She teased as she extinguished both hands, only to rest them on her hips, a ghost of a smirk gracing her lips. " I mean if you really want to play it that way, I'm sure I can get together a list of favorite outfits and other personal possessions I've lost every time Kimmie or…Ron…foiled one of your whack plans." She had to admit, it felt odd to actually refer to her love by name in front of her employer instead of calling him the buffoon or sidekick, but the return to what passed for normal in her life did help to bring her out of her media induced funk.

Dr. Drakken carefully hid a smile. Truth be told, he didn't actually mind that the TV had been demolished; without the distraction, maybe the hired help would actually find ways to make themselves useful around the lair…and besides, if he wanted to indulge in the guilty pleasure of an Agony County episode every now and then, there was still the big screen in his private quarters. I never thought I'd be glad to see her ire turned in my direction he thought But at least she's not sulking anymore. He shuddered; he'd seen her pissed off on more than one occasion, amused, usually at one of his plans, on almost as many, he'd never seen her afraid and only recently began to suspect that she might be capable of attaining true happiness. But a sulking, despondent Shego had radically shaken his view of the young woman. At least now things were almost normal. " Ah…yes…" he stammered, " well played Shego."

She allowed herself a small nod of victory, the smirk threatening to become a full fledged grin, " So…was there something you wanted Dr. D?" she challenged, wondering if he'd developed enough of a spine to actually bring up her emotional state.

Recognizing the verbal trap laid before him, he wisely chose not to take the bait, " Actually I thought you might like to come down to the lab with me and see for yourself the progress being made on Operation Romeo and Juliet." Without waiting for a response, he turned smartly on his heels and headed back towards the lab, leaving her to follow.

"Finally," Shego muttered, pushing herself out of the chair and following him to the lair's lab. All of the waiting had been driving her crazy, maybe now there would be a chance for some action. Entering the lab, she found Dr. Drakken standing beside a lab table, on which was resting her synthodrone doppelganger. Granted it was mostly covered by a sheet and had data lines running from its body into the nearby bank of computers, but Shego had to admit that when it came to robotics, Drakken knew his stuff. He'd begun working on it almost immediately after the job at the Middleton Space Center, doing everything he could to make it as accurate as possible, which had meant she'd had to stand still for a full body, fully clothed, scan and an almost painfully tedious retinal scan. Curious, she lifted the sheet and took a peek underneath.

" Ah…Shego?" Dr. Drakken stammered, observing her odd behavior with a mixture of curiosity and trepidation, " …what are you doing?" The adage about curiosity killing the cat briefly flashed across his brain as the words left lips.

" Just making sure that you weren't using your imagination for once," She smirked, lowering the sheet once again. Glancing up, she noticed he paled at the implication and her smirk widened into an evil grin. Ooh, I could have some fun with this.. She placed her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes, " You know, making sure that you weren't making any comments about my weight in a passive aggressive way or anything." She paused, " Why, what did you think I was doing?"

Dr. Drakken gulped, his Adam's apple bobbing convulsively, " Err….ah…you see." As he backed up, his leg bumped the computer bank and he realized that he was trapped. So, when does my life start flashing before my eyes?

She let him stew for a few moments in fear before dropping her hands to her side and turning her attention back to the synthodrone to hide a grin, " So, how long 'til little sister here is up and running?"

Letting out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding, Dr. Drakken turned his attention to the computer bank he'd bumped into and rapidly clicked a few keys, " Well…" he began, pompously, " it'll probably be another day or two until the personality files have finished transferring over, throw in a half day for debugging and performance testing…then of course there will be the dental molding we'll have to make…"

Shego's head jerked up, " Alright sport," she said, turning her full attention back to the not so good doctor, " Dental moldings? I think it's time we share the details of this little plan." It was all she could do to keep from cornering him and beating the information out of him. He'd revealed precious little of " Operation Romeo and Juliet" save the fact that it involved a synthetic Shego and that it would reunite her with her true love. Now, as he'd rambled on in response to her simple question, she had a sinking feeling that this was going to be as convoluted as any of his other idiot schemes Not this time she growled silently not if I have anything to say about it.

" Well…" he responded, a bit less pompously, " it's quite simple really." The look he received in response suggested that she didn't exactly share his definition of simple, "Once Shego 2.0 is up and running we'll spring what's his name from jail and create a synthodrone of him as well, accurate down to the last detail, including dental molds. We'll then allow them to go on a crime spree only to be tragically cut down by Global Justice. All that will be left of course is the dental records, which will let the world believe you're dead. Then we whip up a couple of new identities for the two of you and that's that." He brushed his hands together dismissively.

There were no words to describe what Shego was feeling as the plan finally sunk in. Oh my god, he's actually serious She wondered, awestruck at the obvious pride on his turquoise face And to think I actually wonder why we've never managed to take over the world . Chasing the thought from her head, she held up both hands in front of her, " Whoa…there big guy, let's just back that plan up a few hundred feet…I'm all for the random destruction a crime spree would entail…but I'm pretty sure I can pull that off on my own without little sister standing in for me…and faking our own deaths? A little drastic there, don't you think?" A small part of her had to grudgingly admit it had its good points, however, she'd taken pride in the reputation she'd built up as Shego, she didn't look forward to having to start over from scratch.

" Not really," he replied, looking at her oddly. " I mean, if you and Stoppable are planning a future together it'll be a little easier if you aren't worried about Global Justice or the authorities hounding every step, won't it? And do you really expect that he would really just jump ship into our camp? I mean he did do pretty well with the whole mega weather generator, I'll grant that the boy has a certain natural affinity for evil…."

The shocks just kept coming; first an admittedly sensible plan that even Dr. Drakken would be able to pull off, then he actually remembered Ron's name, now an unusual level of insight from the usually oblivious villain. Awww crap she fumed Dr. Dementor's finally gotten ahold of the Pan-Dimensional Vortex Inducer again and actually activated it. I've been sucked into an alternate reality…it's the only logical explanation She was pulled from her thoughts by Dr. Drakken's black gloved hand waving back and forth in front of her face. " What?!," She snapped, grabbing his hand and squeezing it threateningly.

" You just seemed to get lost for a moment there," He winced, grabbing his wrist with his free hand and unsuccessfully trying to free it from her vice like grip. " Ah Shego…a broken hand is going to slow working on Operation Romeo and Juliet." His hand was suddenly free and he stumbled back a few feet, rubbing his slightly crushed digits tenderly.

" Sorry Doc," She said gruffly, " Just guess it hit a nerve there and…as much as I hate to admit it…things have been happening so quickly…haven't really given much thought to the future and how it would have to work out." She sighed heavily, once again feeling the weight of the situation settle on her shoulders, Every damn time I get a shot at happiness…life has to throw a monkey wrench into the works It was still odd to open up to him, but right now she didn't feel particularly witty, and there was no way she was going to give him anything but her best when it came to snide remarks. A girl had to have her pride if nothing else… Wasn't it your pride that got you into this mess in the first place? a tiny voice piped up in the back of her mind. A voice that she chose to ignore. " But you've got my full attention, go on."

Drakken smiled knowingly but kept amazingly kept from remarking on the difficulties of her situation. " Now…I even managed to find a way to convincingly replicate your unique abilities, since cloning is off the table." He turned back to the computer bank and pressed a large green button. Immediately a wall at the far end of the lab lifted away to reveal what appeared to be a firing range, in front of which sat a small metal cart holding replicas of her gloves. Striding confidently past her, he approached the tray and pulled on the green glove, pumping his hand into a quick fist and releasing it. Instantaneously, his hand was surrounded by bright green flame before he drew his arm back and then whipped it forward, sending a bolt of flame towards the end of the firing range to destroy a paper target. Another pump of the hand and the flames surrounding Dr. Drakken's hand extinguished. " So, what do you think?" he asked, flashing her an overly confident grin.

It took a few moments for her to remember how to speak, " How…" She began, making her way towards the firing range, " How did you do that?" She growled, a slow rage building inside of her. The synthodrone looking like her was one thing, but for him to give it the one perk that came from that accursed comet that made her stand out among the villainous community? That struck a little too close to home. It may not have been cloning, but it came close enough to make her wonder if he really wanted to help her, or was just using her situation with Ron to create a more complacent replacement.

Perhaps sensing his impending doom, Dr. Drakken slipped the glove off and set it back on the cart before sidling away from it uneasily. " Now Shego…." He stuttered, continuing to put some distance between them, just to be safe " We want Shego 2.0 to be as convincing as she can be, don't we? And as downright intimidating as you are even without the plasma…like right now…do you really think Possible wouldn't suspect something if "you" didn't come at her with everything you've got?". For once in his life it seemed that someone upstairs finally decided to take pity on him, and the enraged villainess stopped in her tracks as the logic of his words filtered its way into her mind.

" Spill." She ordered, alternately glaring at the gloves on the tray and the not quite cowering doctor Damn it, I hate it when he has a point.

Drakken silently released a breath he hadn't been aware he'd been holding and gestured to the gloves, " It's quite simple really. I modified the flame thrower the new synthodrones are equipped with to fit into the gloves, and added an early prototype synthogoo emitter to the palm. Once the fingers contract into a fist, a palm sized amount of highly unstable synthogoo is released into the hand and is shortly thereafter set ablaze by micro flame emitters. The color of the flame is altered by the synthogoo to appear green, and when thrown, the flaming projectile adds some concussive force that fire alone wouldn't have."

Shego's eyes were in serious danger of rolling completely out of her head. " Alright…listen up, and listen good. I'm only going to say this once," She sighed, " Of all the plans you've had this…is definitely the least whack one you've had. When did you start making sense?"

Dr. Drakken smiled nervously, " Since I've been considering retiring." It was all he could do to keep from grinning at her shocked expression.

" What?!" Shego nearly screamed, " You're considering retiring? What about Operation That's Amore? We boosted a prototype booster rockets and I had to fight the Princess and put up with her little Global Justice boytoy and you're not going to do anything with them? " Once again she began to advance on him.

" Exactly Shego," He replied with a confidence he didn't feel, he held up a hand, palm outward, surprisingly bringing her to a stop a few feet from him. " You yourself just pointed out that Kim Possible was running around with a Global Justice agent..tell me…compared to every other fight you've had with her, how was that last one? Any harder?"

She paused and thought it over, her eyes widening as she realized where he was going with it, " No…it was barely even a fight. Almost like she was already…."

" Beaten," Dr. Drakken finished smugly, folding his arms over his chest, " Granted, it isn't throngs of adoring people just waiting to fulfill our every whims, but we've managed to do something that no other villain has done. We have beaten Kim Possible!" Noting her look, he hastened to add, " Yes, I know you regret what happened to Stoppable and we're working on rectifying that…none the less, little Miss Perfect has finally been beaten…not only that, but she's running around with Global Justice…do you realize how easy it would be to actually take over the world? I mean, come on, even Duff Killigan could do it at this point." He waited for Shego to stop laughing before continuing, " You know, you're not the only one who enjoys a challenge. Now…if you don't mind, I should get back to work on Operation Romeo and Juliet. You should get out of here…find some place quiet and relax…I'll call you when we're ready to go forward…though if you're just itching for something to do, I suppose you could go steal a big screen TV to replace the one you destroyed." Without waiting for a response, he walked past her and back to the computer bank.

Shego knew when she was being dismissed, though she didn't have to like it.

" Fine," she growled, turning around and heading for the stairs, " Just don't take too long…oh…and the big screen? So not happening." Without waiting for the outraged response, or more likely, begging for her to change her mind, she stormed up the stairs and made her way to the hangar and her jet.

Prying the canopy open, she settled into the cockpit and began running through the pre-flight check, the familiar routine actually bringing a measure of peace to her mind. All systems indicated that they were in perfect working order and she closed the canopy, bringing the throttle up and maneuvering towards the exit. Moments later, the lair was a speck in the background and she was airborne, though she wasn't quite sure of her destination. " I could always just break Ron out of prison," she muttered, eyeing the weapons controls of the jet, " simple smash and grab so to speak. Straight to the point…no complicates schemes, no robots…and absolutely no way in hell anything GJ could scramble could catch up with us…might be a tight fit with both of us in here but I'm sure he wouldn't complain. God knows I wouldn't." A slow smile spread across her lips. It was a great plan except for two small details. The first, and lesser, obstacle was the fact that Global Justice had dozens, possibly hundreds of little hidey holes scattered around the world and she couldn't attack all of them just looking for her love without being noticed at least once; the greater obstacle would almost certainly be Ron himself, years of working on the side of good probably wouldn't allow him to just walk out of a prison on the arm of a known criminal, even if they were in love. And yet, it was his belief in doing the right thing that shaped him into the man she'd fallen for. " Ok," she sighed, for once listening to the small part of her that still believed in doing the right thing herself, " No prison breaks. Maybe I can just find out where he is and sneak in for a conjugal visit…or two…" The thought lifted her spirits, even though she had no intention on actually following through on it, and she turned the jet in the mid-afternoon sky to head for her home outside of Lowerton.

It shouldn't have surprised her that Ron hadn't given up the location of her home or her identity to Global Justice, but the lack of any kind of law enforcement surrounding the place still threatened to melt her heart all over again. If they've harmed so much as a hair on his head… she fumed silently, all too familiar with some of Global Justice's interrogation techniques, as she brought the jet in for a soft landing on the front lawn; the silent threat was cut off as she noticed a large, plain brown package sitting on her porch. " Ok," she muttered, popping the canopy and leaping from the cockpit to land in a crouch, " It just screams trap. Might as well as spring it, I could use the distraction." Rising from her crouch, she flared a single hand and blasted the top half of the box off; the resultant squeak of terror wasn't the explosion she'd been expecting and was all too familiar. Before she was even aware of it, she had raced onto the porch and kneeled beside the box, staring down into it. " Sorry Rufus," she said sheepishly, extending a hand into the box and waiting for him to hop on board.

The mole rat flashed her a toothy grin and climbed into her hand, " S'ok." He chirped.

Lifting her hand front the box, Shego found a second surprise waiting inside, a Kimmunicator. " Guess that explains how you found your way back here on your own," she said, giving the mole rat a slight glare. She knew that she should trust Rufus, but old habits die hard. She let Rufus settle himself up on her shoulder before reaching back into the box and carefully extracting the communications device. There were no obvious explosives strapped to the device, no red headed cheerleaders dropping out of the sky or Global Justice agents rushing out of the forest surrounding her home. " You don't really think I'm going to turn this thing on, do you?" she asked

In response, she got a fairly good rendition of the puppy dog pout, the effect wasn't even diminished by the protruding teeth, " Uh-huh, play."

" Fine, fine…" she muttered, " why do I have a feeling I'm going to regret this." Kicking the remains of the box out of the way she walked up to the front door and fished a key out of her jump suit's pocket with her free hand, unlocked the door and headed inside, flicking on the living room lights on her way to the couch. " Ok," she began, casting a glance towards the rodent on her shoulder, " I'm going out on a limb and trusting you because Ron trusts you…but I have to warn you, if this is a trap, they'll be adding cruelty to naked mole rat to my criminal record." There was a startled "eep" followed by Rufus scurrying from her shoulder to perch on the arm of the couch. " Here goes nothing," she muttered, turning the Kimmunicator on.

The screen sprang to life revealing a serious looking young man obviously staring into a video camera…Wade, she believed his name was. " Hello Shego," he said, far more seriously than she'd ever heard a teenager, " Don't worry this isn't broadcasting or anything…I'm just a recording." Shego let go a breath she hadn't been aware she was even holding. " And don't worry…I didn't tell Kim or Global Justice about this address…you're probably wondering how I even knew where to send Rufus." Now that he mentioned it, that was a good question, " I don't know how much you know…but for the longest time, I had a tracking chip in Ron. And no…I don't have it tracking anymore. But after the whole thing went down with Ron being captured by GJ, I looked over my records as to where the GPS signature indicated he'd been spending time lately. When Rufus contacted me and asked for my help getting back to Shego, he was able to provide enough details to suggest what address to send his package to."

Shego glanced once more at a somewhat bashful, yet proud, rodent standing on the arm of her couch. " Ok, no more underestimating you from here on out," she chuckled, though she really shouldn't have been surprised considering how many of Dr. Drakken's doomsday devices had been taken apart by the small bucktoothed rodent.

" Seriously though," Wade continued, bringing her attention back to the screen, " given your line of work, you're probably wondering why I'd bother to keep your address secret from the authorities when one of the two people I'd consider my friend is currently languishing in a Global Justice detention facility." Shego began to wonder if the young man was a psychic in addition to being a computer genius, as he'd anticipated her questions perfectly. " There are two reasons," the recording continued, " the first, and most important, is that I trust Ron. Sure, sometimes he can be a little…immature…but he honestly believes the best of everyone, and while I don't know all the details, if Ron thinks enough of you to be in a relationship with you, then I'm going to trust his judgment. The second reason; I think he's going to need you in the near future. Normally I'd be fairly gung-ho for him to get together with Kim, because ….well honestly, it's been almost a foregone conclusion those two would end up together, but the way Kim's been acting lately…" He trailed off despondently for a moment before shaking himself out of it, " Anyway…I just have a feeling that things are going to be rough, and he's going to need someone who really cares about him. I'm hoping that he's made the right choice here and that it's you." There was another pause and something hardened in the young man's eyes that sent a shiver down her spine, even though she knew it was a recording, " But if I'm wrong, believe me when I say that there is no place on earth you can hide that I won't be able to find you." The recording cut out and the screen went dark.

Just as Shego was about to set the Kimmunicator on her couch, the screen popped back to life, " Oh, and one more thing." The young man said in a much more amused tone than she'd heard throughout the previous message, " this Kimmunicator will self destruct in five seconds. I've always wanted to say that." The young man's face was then replaced by a LED countdown beginning with a large red five. Instantly she was on her feet and racing for the door, clutching the Kimmunicator tightly in her hand. Flinging the door open once more, she shot to the end of the porch and hurled the damned thing as far as she could away from her home and property.

Once again, she was grateful that the remote location of her home ensured that there would be no nosy neighbors coming to investigate the seemingly random explosion or calling the authorities. " Never did care for Mission Impossible," she muttered heading back into her home. " So," she stated, fixing her gaze on the mole rat perched on her couch, " You wanted to come stay with me instead of Princess?"

" Yup, yup," Rufus responded, nodding vigorously and favoring her with a smile.

For reasons she couldn't quite comprehend, the rodent's devotion touched her almost as much as his master's and she felt her lips tug into a smile in response. " Well then, we should go about finding you some food." She turned and headed for the kitchen, leaving the mole rat to follow.

Meanwhile, in an undisclosed Global Justice facility, Ron was beginning to doubt Monkey Fist's prediction that everyone would be out to get him. Not that it stopped the mad Englishman from repeating the dire prediction every chance he got, but it had been two days and nothing overt had been tried. Oh, sure, there were the death glares he got from the other inmates, and Tiny of course, but so far, so good as far as prison went.

Of course that probably had something to do with the almost celebrity status he had as a prisoner, he'd heard the rumors that Dr. Director herself had made it clear to the guards that if anyone allowed him to come to harm, whether directly or indirectly, they'd be out of a job. This, naturally, led to his free exercise and meal times being staggered so that he was the only one out of a cell at certain times. Now was one of those times.

" Alright Stoppable," Tiny's growl came across the exercise yard, " Time's up. Hit the showers. I'll be waiting to escort your sorry ass to the mess hall for lunch, so don't dawdle." Without another word, the guard turned his back on Ron and headed back into the main compound.

Sitting in a perfect lotus position against the yard's far wall, Ron opened his eyes and slowly climbed to his feet. " Gee, with such top flight guards, it's a miracle anyone ever escapes from Global Justice custody," he muttered sarcastically. " Heck, I could probably do it myself without breaking a sweat." As he trudged back towards the compound, he couldn't ignore the tiny voice at the back of his head And given the way things are going, you'll probably have to do just that…I mean, its been two days and no sign of Sheena riding to the rescue. Hell…she breaks Drakken out of prison faster than this and she only barely tolerates the guy…would it be so far fetched to believe that she was just using you? He didn't dignify the voice with a response, other than slapping himself in the back of the head; and while he'd never admit it, the thought had crossed his mind more than once.

" Of course, when she breaks Dr. Drakken out of jail, it's usually because she's right there with him," he rationalized to the empty locker room as he entered and began stripping his bright orange prison jumpsuit from his body. The thought did little to chase the negativism from the back of his mind, " Then again, even if she does show up, it'll probably just make things worse if I actually do let her break me out." He sighed. " And here I thought love was supposed to be easy." Despite the seriousness of the situation, he smiled, and headed into the shower area. One of the bright spots about being kept isolated from the rest of the prison population, he didn't have to worry about dropping the soap. Stepping into the shower, he turned on the water and into the spray. " Bright side about being kept here is the bon diggity water pressure," he sighed as the water pounded his body. Not that he didn't want freedom once more, but if he ever wanted to taste it again with any semblance of the man he'd become left, weak humor was better than none. Plus, there was the satisfaction of letting Tiny and Monkey Fist, among others, think that the place wasn't getting to him.

He'd been in the shower not five minutes when he heard the distinctive hiss of the entrance opening. " Aww, come on Tiny. I know we've got our issues, but man I've only been in here a couple minutes," Ron moaned, " I haven't even had time to work up a good lather here. Do you have any idea how long it takes to get Monkey Fist's scent off of me? And this is just from having adjoining cells!" Nonetheless, he tossed his soap aside and reached out for the handles to turn the water back off, stopping mid reach by an unexpected, and unwelcome response.

" Well..I can't tell from this angle squeeb, but I'm going to guess that the only "tiny" one around here is you."

As much as he didn't want to, Ron turned to face the voice, gazing into the goggle eyed, fish faced Gill. " Aww…this tanks Gill. You of all people have to understand the importance of a nice relaxing dip every now and then." He replied lightly, not even bothering to wonder where Tiny actually was. " If you want the shower, you're just going to have to wait your turn."

The reject from the black lagoon actually laughed, " It's not a matter of what I want Ronnie," he began darkly, " It's what Senor Senior Senior wants. Namely, you, dead." He stepped fully into the shower area, leaving a few feet between him and Ron, giving him a dismissive once over.

Ron sighed, slipping unconsciously into a fighting stance Great, now I'm going to need to take a shower after showering. Damn Monkey Fist being right about people lining up to take me on. " And what do you get out of this Gill? Besides my being dead of course."

Gill grinned, revealing a mouthful of daggers, " Well…there is that," he conceded, " but Senor Senior Senior has promised that if I'm the one to do you in, he'll put money into research that'll allow me to go from Gill to Gil at will. No need for taking a nice dip in Lake Wannaweep. And from there, I can begin building an army of shape shifting mutants that will allow me to take over the world."

Ron had to choke back a laugh, " Take over the world? Finally got tired of being a small fish in a small pond huh? Ready to play with the sharks, huh?" Fish puns, did they ever get old?

If one were to judge by Gill's reaction, the answer was yes. " You're going down hard Ronnie," he growled before spewing of mutagenic slime towards his freckled antagonist and rushing forward as Ron predictably ducked below the blob.

Anticipating the attack, Ron rose to meet the mutant, driving his fist into Gill's ribcage and knocking him back towards the lockers. " You're going to have to work a little harder than that if you want to take me down Gill…hell, Dr. Drakken has a better shot at actually offing me than you do." He sneered. A ghost of a smile flitted across his lips as the memory of another recent locker room fight crossed his mind. Whoa…déjà vu he mused amusedly Great I can now get a role in a Keanu Reeves movie

" I'm just getting warmed up squeeb," Gill shot back, coming back in slowly, his hands balled into his fists and eyes narrowed, " And you make one joke about cold clammy fish, and I swear, you'll be begging for death by the time I'm done with you." He threw a poorly executed haymaker at Ron's head that was easily dodged.

Ron grinned, " You really are out of your element, aren't you?" He was caught off guard however by a crescent kick that landed in his abdomen, knocking the air from his lungs but leaving him on his feet, " Aww. Come on that wasn't necessarily a fish joke, it could have just been a keen observation on your fighting skills, or lack thereof."

" Laugh this off Ronnie," Gill growled, lashing out again with a quick kick aimed at Ron's crotch.

Ron reacted solely on instinct, scissoring his legs together around the webbed foot, " Gill, believe me when I say that you're going to thank me for stopping that kick. You wouldn't believe how protective Shego can be of what she considers to be hers. This way, you'll just get your ass handed to you and not end up in a box of fish sticks." Grabbing the attached leg with both hands, he swung around in a circle and threw his adversary into the wall of the shower.

Gill groaned, slowly sliding up the wall to a relatively upright position and glaring daggers at his long time rival, " The only one who's going to end up in a box here is you Stoppable." Once again he spewed forth a blob of mutagenic slime, and just as predictably, Ron dodged, this time leaping over it in a rare display of showmanship.

This time, however, Gill had anticipated the move and used the wall to launch himself forward, ramming himself into his opponent and knocking him across the tiles. " You were saying something Ronnie?"

Laying on his back on the cool, damp tile, Ron smiled as he noticed something out of the corner of his eye, " Yea, actually I was, short, green and slimy," he shot back, knowing the insult would blind his opponent to his hand reaching out for the translucent bar of soap just a few feet from him.

" And what would that be, squeeb?" Gill replied menacingly, stalking towards his apparently helpless victim.

Ron's fingers tightened around the bar of soap and he met Gill's eye gaze directly, " Just that with your lack of fighting skill, and your oh so clichéd threats, maybe you really are ready for the big leagues. A piece of advice though, for the last time you get caught…or should I say hooked? And we all know there'll be a next time because real villains never stay caught for long…how long have you been locked up here again? I digress…" The deepening growl let him know that he'd struck a nerve. " Anyway, getting back to my point…the next time you're caught, and you're in the shower. Make sure you don't drop the soap." With that, he gave the soap a squeeze, sending it sliding across the floor and directly under a webbed foot. Gill went down hard and before he could get up to continue the fight, Ron was on his feet, delivering a powerful kick to the mutant's head, knocking him out.

The sudden silence in the shower was broken by the startling sound of slow clapping, and Ron turned to see Dr. Director and Kim, along with a half dozen other armed Global Justice personnel standing at the edge of the tiled shower area, it was the Global Justice head doing the clapping. " Well done Ronald, I see the Ron factor is still in full effect," she nodded towards the unconscious mutant and the assembled guards edged forward to take him into custody, " you didn't even need our help."

Ignoring the voice at the back of his mind screaming at him that Sheena would kill him if she ever found out about the other two women getting to see him naked, he didn't even bother to attempt to cover himself, his hands instead curling into fists and uncurling at his sides, " So, what this was some sort of test? Just to see how I could handle myself?"

It was Kim who answered, tearing her gaze away from his lower body with some difficulty. " Of course not, Ron. We were actually coming to let you know that lunch would need to be delayed a bit when we noticed that Tiny wasn't at his post. I was going to go looking for him when we heard the fight in here and thought a little back up might be in order." She glanced towards the soldiers carrying Gill's body from the shower, " Obviously we were wrong about that. But I don't think you'll have to worry about Tiny's harassment any more, right Dr. Director?" She turned towards the older woman out of equal parts deference and a desire to keep her attention from being drawn back to Ron's lower half. This is so not the way I wanted to see Ron naked for the first time, though I can totally see what Shego sees in him…aside from the obvious that he's a great guy She shook her head slightly, as if the mere gesture would chase the unwelcome jealousy that accompanied the thought from her head.

" Exactly," Dr. Director replied coolly, keeping her eye on Ron's, " His attitude towards you has not gone unnoticed Ronald. This dereliction of duty is the straw that breaks the camel's back, so to speak. Though we'll be doing a thorough check of his bank account records before we let him go; if there is any indication that he actually accepted a bribe to let Gill into the showers with you, he'll find himself in a cell as well."

Ron nodded, not allowing the relief he felt at those words show, " So, what's the deal with delaying lunch? Surely it isn't to just stand there staring at my naked body" He paused, a horrible feeling settling into the pit of his stomach, " That isn't the reason, is it?"

Kim's face almost immediately turned a shade of red to match her hair at his words. " No….no…of course not. It's just that you have a visitor." Her eyes darted everywhere, focusing on nothing in particular, " So, now that we know you're safe and sound why don't you go get dried off and dressed and I'll escort you to see them."

" Yea..sure." Ron replied, looking at her oddly before heading back to the locker room portion of the shower. A visitor? Probably just Matt coming back with a court date he mused. It was the most logical explanation, but how often did most logical mean most likely? A fragment of conversation between the two ladies sent a shiver down his spine and encouraged him to move just a little bit faster.

" You know Kimberly," came Dr. Director's voice, " I can see what you find so attractive about Ronald. Those moves, that body…just between us, if I were twenty or so years younger, lets just say that Shego wouldn't be your only competition for his affections."

As he climbed into his regulation prison jumpsuit, Ron said a silent prayer of thanks to whatever gods were willing to listen that GJ hadn't bothered to put any real money into researching time travel.

Moments later Ron and Kim were walking down one of the many identical halls of the detention facility, an uncomfortable silence between them. Ron was the first to break it, " So visitor, huh? Is that the official term for legal representation that we'd prefer that Ron didn't have?" He favored her with a half hearted smile.

Kim sighed He's not that stupid. He's got to know that things can't just be the same as they were as long as he's not willing to give up Shego". Still, she couldn't help but smile weakly in response, " No…it's not Mr. Murdock, though he did contact Dr. Director earlier to let her know that he'd managed to arrange for a court date next week." She shook her head slightly; and she thought that she was able to pull in some pretty sweet favors.

Ron was puzzled, not an unfamiliar feeling, " So if it's not Matt, who'd visit me here? Not my parents, that's for sure and who else would even care?" He made a mental note to thank Matt when they met again, not only for the speedy response in getting a trial date, but for giving him something to cram back down Monkey Fist's throat when he got back to his cell. Maybe due process would actually shut the simian English lord up.

As they arrived outside the visitation room, Kim smiled mysteriously, a bit of her old mischief rising to the surface, " You'll see." She replied, keying the door to open, " In you go."

Ron anxiously entered the room, only to come to a complete halt, staring in shock at his visitor as the door slid closed behind him. " Mr. Barkin? You're here to give me homework while I'm in prison, aren't you? Man, this tanks."

There may have been a ghost of a smile on the old military man's face, maybe. " Stoppable," he replied with a curt nod, " you know, when I handed down your suspension it was to keep you out of trouble, not give you time to get into more trouble. Take a seat." He gestured to the empty chair across from his at the sole table in the room.

" Man, this is just sick and wrong," Ron muttered, walking over and plopping down into the open chair dejectedly, " Ok, so if you're not here to bring me homework in prison, what're you doing here Mr. Barkin? It's really the homework thing, isn't it?"

Barkin frowned, a much more natural expression on his face, " Stoppable," he growled, " Would you forget about the homework? I'm not here to give you any homework. Possible thought you might need someone to talk to…and well…there's no easy way for me to do this."

Ron nodded sagely, " Oh, I understand, it's not like we're each other's favorite people, but come on man, we've bonded before…literally." He grinned. As much fun as it was to harass Monkey Fist, there was something to be said for a rivalry that was a little less heavy on the actual rival part.

Mr. Barkin sighed heavily, there was no way this conversation was going to be an easy one, " Stoppable, if you could just take one moment for once in your life to be serious." He waited until the smile faded from Ron's face before continuing, " I'm here not only because Ms. Possible asked me to be. I'm also here in my official capacity as vice principal of Middleton High school." Another sigh, " Look, Stoppable, I'm not going to beat around the bush here. The school's been in an uproar since this whole thing hit the evening news, and the PTA demanded that the school board convene in an emergency meeting."

Ron gulped, " Why do I have a feeling that I'm not going to like where this is going?" He asked rhetorically.

Another sigh and Barkin's head dropped just perceptibly, " Because, as much as I hate to admit it Ron, you've got good instincts. Trust them. As I was saying…the PTA forced the School board to convene. Now, you probably aren't aware, but the PTA wasn't all that crazy about you and Possible going to school with "normal" students to begin with, they felt that your mere presence would attract the attention of certain undesirable elements that might be a threat to their precious children." He paused, " Now, even though the whole truth about what happened to this Senor Senior Junior hasn't come to light, you've already been found guilty in the court of public opinion in certain circles. Unfortunately, one of those circles was the PTA, with the Rockwallers and Mankeys leading the charge to have you expelled." He ran a hand through his crew cut and sighed, " Even with the Drs. Possible standing up for you, the board had no choice but to bow to the PTA's pressure…too many parents were threatening to withdraw their own children if you were allowed to remain a student. For what it's worth, I'm sorry."

Ron simply nodded in understanding, he couldn't really say that he was surprised by the decision, and despite his professed dislike of school, it still hurt to see an important door to his future being shut in his face because of some self righteous people and their small minded fears. After a few moments of silence his vocal chords were ready to give speech a chance again, "Mr. Dr. P and Mrs. Dr. P actually stood up for me? Even though I was in the company of a woman who continually beats their daughter until she's black and blue?" It was kind of shocking, and touching really.

Mr. Barkin leaned back in his chair and adjusted his tie uncomfortably, " Ah..yea. In fact they asked me to pass along a message when they found out I'd be visiting." He cleared his throat, clearly not used to dealing with this sort of thing, " They wanted you to know that no matter what, they'd be there for you, and just because you don't share Possible DNA, it doesn't mean you're not family." Glancing at the young blond, he could clearly see that the words had hit a nerve, and tears were pooling in Ron's eyes; deciding to do the macho thing and avoid actually talking about emotions, he powered on, " There might have been a few others who spoke up in your defense, Ms. Renton, both of Monique Jenkins' parents were quite vocal on the subject…ahh…myself." He could clearly see tears streaming down the younger man's face, and he stiffened, wishing there was some where else he could be at the moment. Still, he had to ask, " Everything alright Stoppable?"

Ron favored him with a weak smile and wiped futilely at his eyes in a vain attempt to hide the tears, " Oh, yea, never better, just something in my contacts." He replied, not making eye contact. Neither man brought up the fact that he didn't wear contacts. Ron sat in silence, taking deep breaths and collecting his thoughts Man, I can't believe people actually stood up for me for once other than KP…of course he didn't mention her standing up for me this time. He knew that Kim held a fairly rigid black and white worldview, but he'd never dreamed that if he really needed her to stand up for him she wouldn't. A sudden terror gripped his mind and he had to give voice to it, " Mr. B? It's just me they expelled, right? They didn't kick KP out too, you know, guilt by association?"

At that moment you could have knocked all two hundred plus pounds of the former Marine over with a feather. He's locked up like a common criminal, he finds out that he's been expelled from school for something that's not entirely his fault and he's concerned about Possible? Simply amazing. He felt his mouth settle into a hard line, just shy of a frown There's no doubt about it. The school's losing out in its decision to expel this one; if only there was something I could have done to make them change their decision Intellectually he knew that the "if only" game was useless, but he couldn't quite get rid of the nagging suspicion that he'd failed the young man across from him somehow. " No," He replied, " Not for lack of trying on the Rockwallers' part either. It was decided that despite her flair for danger, Ms. Possible is a shinning example of the quality of Middleton High School's education and getting rid of her would actually do more harm than good."

Ron's lips twitched into a smirk Must not take the easy path and make a joke about the irony of that statement. Still, he'd have been lying to himself if he said that he wasn't glad that Kim hadn't been penalized for his decisions too. " So how'd you get to be the one to come and give me the good news? Draw the short straw or something?" Hey, just because he wasn't going to make the easy joke didn't mean that his sense of humor had to be dead.

To his ever lasting surprise, Mr. Barkin actually smiled. " Actually Stoppable, I volunteered for this assignment." He replied, enjoying the increasing shock playing out on the young blonde's face, " The board just wanted to send a letter to your home. I thought you deserved to be told in person. Hell, after all you've done for this world, I think you deserve a lot more than you're getting right now."

Touched by the sentiment, Ron extended his hand across the table, " Thanks Mr. Barkin," he said as the older man grasped his in a brief shake before releasing it, " that means a lot to me." Despite their antagonistic relationship, it was clear that they shared a mutual respect.

Mr. Barkin allowed himself a tight smile, he couldn't have been more proud of the way Ron was handling himself if the young man was his own son. " You're welcome Stoppable." He paused uncomfortably, " Look, I'm also here because Possible thought you might need someone to talk to about all of this. So I have to ask, how are you doing?"

Ron smiled, fighting the temptation to make it just a little harder on Mr. Barkin, it was clear the conversation could easily end up in dangerously uncomfortable emotional territory. " Actually," he started, leaning back in his seat, " Pretty ok so far. I mean they made sure that my free times are different than any of the other prisoners here, which has more or less kept me out of any fights." He shrugged, " Food's not too bad…about on par with what cafeteria lady dishes out at school, so my stomach's not in revolt. Other than spending most of my day in a cell right next to Monkey Fist, I'd have to say it could be a lot worse." The truth was that it could be a whole lot better too, but that went without saying. He leaned forward slightly, " Of course I can't say how things are going to go down after my trial next week. If I don't go free then I have a feeling the VIP treatment is going to end. Between the two of us, I think they're still trying to convince me to take their deal and give up Shego in exchange for my own freedom."

The other man nodded sagely, he didn't know much about Global Justice per say, but he'd had some experience with law enforcement both in and out of the military and he had a feeling that Ron had hit the nail right on the head. "Probably," he admitted, " heck, Possible probably even asked me to talk to you about this in the hopes that I'd convince you to do just that. Not that I'm going to of course, you're an adult now, you have the right to make your own decisions." He knew that Possible's heart was in the right place, but sometimes he had to wonder just went on in the redhead's mind. " If you don't mind me asking though, why not take the deal?" He had, of course, heard the news reports that the young man in front of him had been sharing the honeymoon suite with the villainess in question and the endless speculation from the so called experts and other talking heads on the news as to whether or not the two of them could have an actual relationship or if Shego had just been using the young man. However, he wanted to get it straight from the source.

Ron smiled sadly and answered the question with one of his own, " Have you ever been in love Mr. Barkin?"

Mr. Barkin felt an answering smile spread across his own face and he loosened his tie before leaning forward conspiratorially, " What I'm about to tell you Stoppable never officially happened, got that?" He waited until Ron nodded his understanding before continuing, " Yes, I've been in love before. In fact there was this one girl in high school…Betty something or other…my parents didn't approve of her at all, but that didn't matter. We were even considering eloping after graduation but then the draft came and I got shipped of to 'Nam…we lost touch after that." He seemed to get lost in the past for a moment before shaking himself free and back to the present, " Still…if I had a chance to go through all of it all over again…the parental disapproval…even 'Nam, if it meant I'd get another chance with her…I'd do it in a heartbeat."

Ron smiled sympathetically, " I know what you mean." With the emotional ice broken, the two began trading war stories like old friends until Kim came back to the room to inform them that visiting time was over and Ron needed to get to his lunch before getting back to his cell. The two parted with a handshake and a deeper mutual respect.

Later that day, as the sun set over the Middleton Country club golf course, Judge Richard Wilson Rockwaller III sunk his last put on the eighteenth hole and started forward to retrieve the ball with a heavy sigh. His game complete, he knew it was time to head back for the club house and then into the real world once more and the media maelstrom that had enveloped his home and family once it had been announced that he would be the judge presiding over the trial of Ron Stoppable. Of course, the media was nothing compared to Bonnie's almost constant demands that he show no mercy and throw the book at Stoppable. As much as he loved his youngest daughter, he had also taken a vow to uphold the law. " Damn Stoppable," he swore, not for the first time, as he reached into the cup and retrieved the ball.

" A sentiment I myself share, your honor." Came a slightly accented voice from behind the kneeling judge.

Richard rose quickly and turned to face the speaker. It was an older gentleman, perhaps only a decade or so older than Richard himself, though the speaker had a full head of gray hair where his own had only begun to go gray at the temples. The speaker was dressed rather conservatively, as would have been required to gain entry to the club in the first place, in tan slacks a white shirt and a navy blue sports jacket. Aside from the lack of any actual golfing equipment, the most startling feature of the speaker was the pain reflected in his light blue eyes. He was, of course, instantly recognizable, even leaning as he was on a cane, as though the weight of the world itself was resting upon him. " Senor Senior Senior," Judge Rockwaller began, " While there may not be any current warrants pending for your arrest, I'm afraid I can't speak with you. It would be a conflict of interest."

Senor Senior Senior nodded in understanding, " That would be true, if I were here to discuss the trial or my son's murder," he began, not bothering to mask the edge of bitterness that crept into his voice, " I just wanted to make a simple request and then I'll leave." He waited until he saw that he had Rockwaller's attention before continuing, " I simply ask that you remember your promise to uphold the law. Many people, and juries are just made up of people, will be swayed by Stoppable's exploits as a world saving vigilante. I simply want justice. Thank you." He turned and began to hobble off , leaning heavily on the cane, pausing momentarily to look back over his shoulder, " Of course, many people also dislike vigilantism and those who flagrantly disregard the law for their own glorification."

In spite of his professional judgment, Richard found himself agreeing with the sentiment. He'd heard it enough from his precious Bonnie, who was constantly overlooked for the far less talented, but far luckier Kim Possible. While it may have been an unpopular opinion in judicial circles, the fact remained, the world saving cheerleader and her sidekick were nothing more than glory seeking vigilantes, even their connection with Global Justice was tangential at best; they operated solidly outside of the rigid order of the law. The fact that they were the good guys actually placed them lower, in his book, than the scum they fought; villains at least didn't bother to give lip service to the law while they were breaking it. " I assure you, Senor Senior Senior. Justice will be done, my court is not going to be turned into some kind of circus side show." He stated.

Senor Senior Senior smiled softly and nodded his thanks, " One more thing," he started, " You do realize that this is the kind of thing that can make or break a judicial career…or even a political one…I'm sure there are more people than you and I who grow tired of the rule of law being ignored, people who would vote for someone willing to stand up to vigilantes. Good day to you sir." Once more he turned and began hobbling away.

Richard stood there for a moment while the words sunk in. Melissa has been nagging me about considering something more than being a trial judge recently he mused, walking back to his golf bag, tossing the golf ball up and down in his hand idly before dropping it into the bag with his clubs. Maybe it is time that I moved on, and up, in life Slinging the bag over his shoulder, he hurried to catch up with the disappearing form of Senor Senior Senior. " You know," he began casually, matching his pace to the old villain's, " I'm not really needed at home for a couple of hours, and I can certainly do without fighting my way through the news vans parked outside of it anyway. Perhaps you'd care to join me in the club house for a couple of drinks and we could…talk."

Senor Senior Senior smiled, having fully counted on the judge's ambition to be the key to his success, " Your honor, it would be my honor." He chuckled softly. He lifted his cane and tucked it beneath his arm, a sudden spring in his step that went unnoticed by the judge at his side.


	16. Trial Under the Big Top

Bad As She Wants Me to Be

Chapter 16: Trial under the Big Top

Author: RoguesKnight

Disclaimer: Ron, Shego, KP, et, al are the property of the house of mouse and their associated lawyers, not mine and no copyright infringement is intended. ( Actually the only thing I intend is not to get sued) Matt Murdock (and a couple others mentioned) are the property of Stan "The Man" Lee.

Author's notes: Yes I'm still alive. The rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated as the saying goes…two computers and a few years after I started this thing, I intend to finish it. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon…man, I've got to cut back on the old movies. A big thank you goes out to my reviewers who've never given up hope that I might one day finish this…I only hope I can live up to your standards. As always, dedicated to my beautiful wife.

Additional note: for information regarding a judge and recusing him/herself from a hearing I turned to as I'm not a legal scholar myself. That being said, please bear with me for the court scene…since my knowledge of court proceedings is a little rusty since the last time I spent time observing court was for college.

The old saying that time flies when you're having fun was unfortunately true, as Ron discovered. While there were no further attacks in the shower, as Dr. Director had promised, and he'd learned to almost completely tune out Monkey Fist's innuendos and insinuations about the fate that lay before him, the week leading up to his court date felt like an eternity. He'd never in all his life had this much time to devote solely to his thoughts, and as he'd long suspected, it was fairly well overrated. * Sheena hasn't given up on me * he swore silently for the billionth time * she probably just has to actually find me…after all, I'm not even sure where I am. Of all the times to ask Wade to deactivate the tracking chip, it had to be just before I end up in a GJ prison facility *. Pacing the breadth of his cell, he couldn't help but be grateful for the fact that due to the staggering of meals and exercise periods, he was pretty much alone right now. " How much longer until Mr. Monkeyshines gets back from the jungle gym?" he asked the lone guard stationed outside of his cell.

" Just about twenty five minutes now sir," the guard replied tiredly, checking his watch, " Five minutes fewer than the last time you asked. And twenty five minutes closer to my replacement comes on shift and you're someone else's problem." The last was punctuated with a glare that was equal parts annoyance and resignation.

Ron rubbed the back of his neck embarrassedly, " He he…sorry, when I got locked up, they took my watch along with my belt and shoe laces. They must think that I'm smart enough to use that to engineer an escape or something." The remark drew no response from the exasperated guard and Ron resumed his pacing. * Now, maybe if Rufus was here we could work something out with just my watch and the ingenuity of a mole rat. On my own, I'm no Macgyver *. With a sigh, he sat down on the cot and dropped his head into his hands, " I'd say that things are going to be alright…but lets face it, I'm locked up on mostly trumped up charges, I still haven't been properly mirandized and even with Matt as my lawyer, I can't be sure I'm going to get a fair trial. Hell, even if I took their deal and turned Sheena over to Global Justice, there's no guarantee they'd hold their end up once they got what they wanted." And that's what really gnawed at him, not that he had any intention of turning his love over to GJ, but the fact that since his incarceration, he'd had the blindfold ripped from his eyes with regards to the agency he and Kim and often worked closely with. " If I ever actually get out of here, I'm going to have to seriously re-think the whole hero gig," he muttered.

" That would be a real waste of talent, Mr. Stoppable," came the unexpected reply, " the world doesn't have enough heroes as it is."

Ron's head jerked up to find Mr. Murdock standing outside his cell, a faint smile playing across his lips, beside a less than thrilled looking Kim Possible. " Matt…err..I mean Mr. Murdock," he corrected, standing up and approaching the bars of his cell, " I didn't think anyone would actually hear that." Brushing self consciously at his bright orange jumpsuit, he took a deep breath, " I guess it's show time?"

Matt nodded solemnly, letting his smile widen slightly, " Well, it's been said that I have ears like a bat," he answered, " and it's not quite show time. We have a couple hours until the trial, so you have some time to get cleaned up and we'll hit the road. I managed to get a couple of strings pulled and I'll be escorting you to the courthouse myself…with one Global Justice agent in the same vehicle as us. I've asked Ms. Possible to be that in vehicle agent, in order to make it as stress free as possible."

It was only when the attorney mentioned getting cleaned up that Ron noticed he was holding a zipped garment bag in his free hand. " Well…I guess it's time that we get this show on the road." For the first time he turned to meet his old friend's eyes, doing his best not to notice the disappointment there, " KP, if you don't mind doing the honors?" He inclined his head slightly towards the locked cell door.

" Of course," she replied robotically, breaking the eye contact dejectedly as she stepped to the door and keyed in the access code.

The door slid open and it was all Ron could do to keep the faint spark of hope in his heart from blossoming into a full blown flame. Despite his earlier misgivings, he couldn't help but believe that no matter what else might happened, Mr. Murdock would do his best to help his client. " Good to see you again Mr. Murdock," he said, " though I have to admit, I don't think that's one of my suits from home."

Matt nodded slightly, " I figured something a little nicer might be in order." Handing the garment bag over to Ron, he smirked, " I heard some of the most interesting stories regarding your fashion sense when the news tired of re-running old stories and decided to start interviewing your friends and classmates. A miss Rockwaller, in particular couldn't seem to talk about anything else." Judging from the sudden up tick in Ron's heartbeat, he got the distinct impression that there was no love lost between the two teens.

" Ah yea…somehow I'm not surprised," Ron drawled dryly, as he accepted the bag, " Bonnie's just one of my biggest fans…right after Kim." His eyes caught the designer name on the bag, at least he presumed it was a designer considering it appeared to be Italian and he'd never heard it before, and widened. * Holy…even if I could convince mom and dad to take some of the Naco money out of my trust fund I'm not sure I could justify this suit *. " Mr. Murdock…I can't accept this. I mean you're already doing me a huge favor by representing me pro bono…this is too much. Really, maybe I should just go as is. Might as well be honest about who I am. A criminal."

" Ron," Kim began, taking a hesitant step towards her friend, " you know that's not true. You're a good person who's made some bad choices…but it's not too late to start making the right ones. I'm sure Dr. Director would be willing to put the deal back on the table…"

Both men turned to face the redhead as she trailed off slowly, " Ms. Possible, while I and, I'm sure my client, appreciate your sentiments, as we've already advised Global Justice, we're willing to take our chances at trial." Murdock answered. " And Ron, the young lady is right. You are a good person, I wouldn't represent you if I didn't believe in you. What we need now is for you to start believing in yourself." Reaching out he briefly grasped the younger man's shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze, " So yes, you can accept this suit…and if you're really worried about paying me back, just don't give up on being a hero. If you need to take a break…that would be understandable…take some time and weigh your options carefully before you make any drastic decisions…and no matter what follow your heart and it won't lead you wrong." He paused " And I apologize if it's a horrible color…I let my partner Foggy do the shopping unsupervised in New York, probably not the wisest decision on my part."

The remark had the desired effect and Ron actually let out a short laugh as he felt some of the stresses of the day begin to fade away, " Hey, if it's horrible, then it's all the more me. Guess I'd better go get dressed." He nodded silently to Kim, who began to head off towards the men's room.

" Get a move on Ron," Kim said impatiently, " you know it's risky having you out at the same time as the other …guests…and we don't want a repeat of the Gill incident." She didn't want to think about what Ron's getting ready for court meant. * What would be worse?* She wondered * If he was found guilty and sent back here? Or if he was found innocent and takes off to be with Shego? Either way I'll lose him. That is if I haven't ready. * Stopping in front of the men's room, she smiled brightly at the guard stationed outside " Anyone in there?"

" No ma'am," came the short reply.

Kim nodded, " Make sure it stays that way until we come back out." Pushing the door open, she motioned for Ron with her other hand, " Come on Ron. It's safe."

Ron gulped, " Sure…but ah, Kim? Until we come out? Men's room….you're not a man…" Stepping past her into the men's room, he made sure he was clear of the door before hooking the garment bag's hanger over the door of a nearby stall and beginning to unzip his jumpsuit. The sound of the door closing let him know that despite certain anatomical differences, she'd still followed him into the room.

" You might have a point Ron," she said, doing her best not to stare at her undressing friend, " however Dr. Director's orders since the whole thing with Tiny letting Gill in here…by the way, you'll be happy to know our review of his bank records did show he received a rather sizeable deposit the day the attack took place…he's been relieved of duty and placed under arrest at another facility…but her orders are that you're not to be without at least one guard at all times when you're not in your ce…err room" She still couldn't bring herself to use the word cell…it would make it all to real if she had to finally accept that her best friend was actually willing to face prison time rather than let a known criminal face the justice she so richly deserved. * What happened to us Ron?* She sent the thought towards the back young man who was as far from her as he could be while being in the same room. As Ron slid the jumpsuit down to the floor, Kim quickly averted her eyes, only to catch his reflection in a nearby mirror. * Easy there Kim * she reminded herself * If you don't want to blow any chances with him, you can't keep making passes at him while he's willing to keep blowing them off*. Ignoring the blush creeping to her cheeks, she turned her eyes from the mirror. " You know, Mr. Murdock is right Ron…."

Stepping free of the jumpsuit, Ron slowly unzipped the garment bag, fearing the worst after Matt's ominous warning about the potential fashion disaster waiting within. Fortunately, suit within was a simple black, with a white shirt and red tie, at the bottom of the bag was a pair of elegant black shoes. * Probably got my sizing from my intake information * he mused as he reached into the bag and worked the shirt off of its hanger and slipped it on. " About what?" he asked, realizing that she'd obviously wanted just that response.

" That if you listen to your heart, you won't go wrong," she said softly. Taking a deep breath, she continued, " Ron, you're a good…great… person, and I honestly don't know what I'd do without you in my life…you're what makes Team Possible possible. And I hate this place where we've ended up…." Her breath hitched and she had to stop before she broke down crying.

* Well at least she didn't just come in here to try and convince me that we're destined to be together romantically…or try for a pretrial conjugal visit…* Sliding into the pants, he pushed the thought to the back of his mind. * Alright, she's actually making a good faith go at this…the least I can do is the same. * Pulling the shoes from the bag, he knelt down to lace them and slip them on. " And what if my heart leads me to Shego, Kim?" he queried. There, he'd said it. Now all he could do is wait for the fall out.

Even though she knew there was a chance he'd ask that, the words still felt like a knife in the heart. * I guess I've lost him no matter what goes down in the court today * she thought sadly " Then," she hesitated, and had to force the next words from her lips, "…maybe you should listen to it…I want you to be happy Ron. Even if that means being happy with someone other than me. I can't say that I'd be happy with your choice…but, you're my friend." She turned towards him to find that he'd finished dressing and was fiddling with the tie, trying to get the knot to fit just right. " Looks good on you Ron.," she said approvingly, walking towards him, " Just hold still a moment." She waited for him to comply before gently adjusting the knot into place and letting her hand rest on his chest. * Oh what the hell * she mused * one way or another, it'll likely be the last time I have a chance at this.* Before he could react, she slid her arm up and around his neck, bringing his head down to hers with her other hand and kissing him tenderly. It didn't last as long as she'd have liked it to, nor did she put one iota of her feelings for him into it, but she was fairly certain she'd never have a more perfect kiss. " Sorry," she said releasing her long time friend from her embrace, though the slight smile on her lips suggested that she was anything but sorry, " I shouldn't have done that. I just wanted you to remember that there is more than one choice your heart can make." With that she headed over to the door and pulled it open. " Coming?"

Shaking himself out of his surprise, Ron nodded and followed after her. * Great, she still hasn't given up* He mused amusedly * then again, I've never actually known her to give up on something when she's set her sights on it *. Distractedly, he followed her back to his cell where Mr. Murdock was still waiting. " Well…I guess we'd better get this show on the road," he said trying to hide his nervousness.

" Right," Matt replied calmly, turning towards Kim, " after you Ms. Possible." The light scent of strawberry shampoo and light footfalls confirmed that she passed and Matt fell into step beside Ron, the tapping of his cane, the only sound breaking the suddenly deafening silence. Focusing his attention on his client, he couldn't help but pick up on the jackhammer sound of the younger man's heartbeat. * Impressive the kind of show the kid puts on, if I didn't know better I'd be hard pressed to actually accuse him of being nervous. Fortunately, I do know better. * " Relax, Ron" he lowered his voice conspiratorially, "I'm not going to promise that everything is going to be ok. I can't. And I'll admit there's a roadblock coming up that we'll have to deal with…but we have a couple of cards to play in our favor as well…I'll say more once we're out of here…but one of those cards is self confidence. Go in there looking guilty, and the jury's likely to think you are. So go in there and show the world that you have confidence…you're a hero Ron, show it."

Ron was about to dispute the whole confidence thing once more by pointing out that he was the sidekick to a hero and more often than not a distraction, when he saw Monkey Fist being escorted in the opposite direction. * Confidence, huh* he pondered, * hell, it's worth a shot*. " Hold up a minute," he said softly, placing a hand on the attorney's upper arm and bringing them both to a stop as the simian super villain came parallel to them. " Top secret para-military prison….I'm guessing two to three million dollars," he stated aiming the comment directly towards his tormentor, " top flight lawyer and very nice designer suit…apparently free…and I owe you big for that," he added nodding at Matt, " the look on your face Monty, as you realize that I'm getting my day in court long before you ever will…priceless. There are some things money can't buy…for everything else, there's Global Justice." He could barely contain his laughter as Monkey Fist was prodded into motion away from him, sputtering in impotent fury. " So how was that for confidence?"

" Not bad," Matt chuckled, " I might refrain from antagonizing people on the stand…but other than that, not bad at all." It was a good sign that the young man beside him could still find humor in the midst of such a serious situation. " You know Ron, if you ever make it to New York some day, I'll have to introduce you to my friend Peter…something tells me the two of you would get along just fine."

Up ahead, Kim paused by the exit to the facility and turned to face the two men, " Look, do you guys want to add contempt of court to the list of charges? Get a move on."

Still clearly amused, the two finally joined her, " Am I the only one taking this seriously?" She held up a hand to forestall any response, " that's rhetorical of course. Now, if you don't mind?" she keyed in the code to the door and waited for Ron and Matt to exit before following with a barely concealed huff of " Men."

" So, this Peter guy," Ron said, turning to face his attorney as they continued on, " does he have problems with women too?"

" You have no idea," Matt replied, grinning. His hearing picked up on the sudden increase in both teens' heart beats and his grin widened. It seemed their ride had arrived; his suspicions were confirmed by the sound of an opening door.

" It's good to see you again Master Murdock," came the cultured English greeting.

" Likewise Jarvis," Matt said, coming to a stop unerringly at the curb beside the black stretch limo, " thanks for coming out on such short notice." He extended his right hand as he caught the sound of footsteps coming around the front of the limo, "How was the flight? And how's Tony doing?"

" The flight was rather uneventful…a wonderful change of pace actually," Jarvis replied, grasping the proffered hand briefly before heading to the back passenger door and opening it with a flourish. " Ms. Possible, Mr. Stoppable, if you don't mind, please take a seat and we'll be on our way. I believe our escorts are getting impatient." He inclined his head slightly to regard the Global Justice cruisers idling in front of and behind the limo.

Without a word, a stunned Kim climbed into the back seat of the limo, followed by an equally stunned Ron and a clearly amused Matt. Once he'd settled across from the teens and the door was shut, Kim, it seemed, had shaken the most of her surprise while Ron was still having trouble, looking around the posh interior. " A limo? Don't you think that this is just a little bit over the line? And what about security? While we haven't gotten any credible intelligence to suggest that there are any threats against Ron's person at this time, there's always the chance that Senor Senior Senior could attack the convoy on the way to the courthouse or that Shego could possibly try to rescue Ron …" She glanced at her towheaded friend, " again, not that it's likely but with the security concerns surrounding this trial, I'm afraid as a representative of Global Justice, I'm going to have to insist that we travel in an approved cruiser with an authorized and cleared driver." She paused and leaned forward to address Jarvis who had settled in behind the driver's seat. " No offense meant Mr. Jarvis."

" None taken Ms. Possible," Jarvis answered with a slight nod, making sure to meet her eyes in the rear view mirror.

" Amp down KP," Ron said softly, placing a hand on her shoulder and pulling her back against the seat, " I'm sure that everything has been cleared for us to have a limo. And you have to admit this is a pretty bon diggity ride…I mean, come on, it's probably the last time I'll get to ride in one seeing as even if I'm found not guilty I've been kicked out of school…so no Senior prom for me." He sighed and turned to face Matt, " This is cleared, right?"

Matt nodded solemnly, impressed with the way Ron had taken control of the situation, " Of course it has been" he said with a small smile, leaning back as the limo started into motion, " but if it'll allay your concerns Ms. Possible, I'll have you know that Mr. Jarvis has been cleared by both S.H.I.E.L.D as well as Global Justice for the purposes of driving today and considering external attacks, this isn't any regular limo. It's one of the personal limos of Tony Stark, and thusly equipped with bullet proof windows and paneling and an array of electronic countermeasures to protect against everything from attempted car jackings to being eavesdropped upon by any planted bugs. You're not the only one who can call in a favor from time to time you know."

It was almost too much for Ron to take, " Whoa, whoa…you know Tony Stark? And well enough for him to loan you a limo and a driver? First you bust Dr. Director's chops by casually name dropping one of the top agents in what has got to be the most respected anti-espionage agency in the whole world and expediting a court date…now we're riding in a limo owned by one of the richest men on the planet? Is there anyone you don't know?"

Matt had to admit; if he'd been in Ron's position he'd likely have the same questions. " You know honestly, sometimes it seems like the answer to that question is no." He commented with a wry grin, " And I wouldn't say that I know Tony that well personally, so much as every now and then we're able to extend professional courtesies in a mutually beneficial way."

" I see," Ron nodded, letting it all sink in, " Must come in handy every now and then." Taking on a more serious tone, he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and interlacing his fingers below, " Now I hate to be a downer, but seeing as we're on our way to my first and hopefully only trial ever…you mentioned an obstacle or two…and some things in our favor…please tell me we really have things in our favor." For a moment, he let his guard slip and his nervousness clearly shown through.

Matt took a deep breath and let it our slowly, toning his senses down just enough to keep Ron's heartbeat from deafening him, " Indeed…but first…Jarvis, can we get some privacy please?" There was a brief silence, followed by a low electronic hum broken only when the Global Justice badge pinned to Kim's top started to spark and smoke.

" What the hell?!" She exclaimed, quickly removing the badge and tossing it to the floor between Ron and Matt's feet, " Answers would be nice." She growled, looking down at the slightly smoking badge. " Please and thank you" she added, remembering her manners.

" It would seem," Matt began, rubbing his chin in distractedly, " that Dr. Director doesn't really believe in the concept of attorney client privilege. What Jarvis just did was activate a program designed to interrupt any electronic bugs or other listening devices. Ron can you do me a favor?"

" Sure," the blond youth replied, " What do you need me to do?"

" Pick up Ms. Possible's badge please, and see if you can separate the front from the back." Matt answered. There was a brief pause, followed by the groan of the metal as Ron managed to pry the badge loose, " if I'm right you'll probably see a small circular button resting at the center of a circuit board"

" Ok," Ron said, his voice shaky, " That's just weird…are you sure you're really blind? And how did you know it was Kim's badge?"

" Just a hunch," was the answer, " I was thinking about where I'd hide a bug on a person if I wanted to listen in on a conversation without it being too obvious"

She might not like it, but Kim had to admit the lawyer had a point; still Dr. Director was something of a mentor, she couldn't help but ask, " So what is it that you have against Global Justice Mr. Murdock? I mean, yea, so I was bugged, and I'll admit that's bugging me now, pardon the pun, but you seem naturally suspicious of a decent organization that keeps the world safe. Is that a personal thing, or are all lawyers this paranoid?"

Matt regarded her silently for a few moments, gathering his thoughts. " It's a little of both actually…" he replied, " at least from a defense lawyer's standpoint. Often times there's a massive machine that's turned its attention on an individual who doesn't always have equal resources to protect themselves, so the professional caution helps to level the playing field a little. Granted, it's easier when you believe that your client is innocent. Personally I won't take a case if they aren't. Furthermore…organizations like Global Justice and S.H.I.E.L.D are designed to handle threats that regular law enforcement agencies can't…but that also means that they sometimes ignore niceties such as the rule of law or due process so long as their goals are achieved; they believe that the ends justify the means…it's not a view I, or the founders of this country share. The best way I can think to explain it is as a friend once told me, with great power comes great responsibility. S.H.I.E.L.D and Global Justice have a tremendous amount of power, and correspondingly, they have the responsibility to make sure they don't abuse that power. "

" That's great in theory," Kim retorted, " Really. But the system doesn't always work because the bad guys don't play by the same rules."

" You'll get no disagreement from me," Matt conceded, " However, that doesn't mean we have to lower ourselves to their level. If we do, no one wins and a lot of innocent people get hurt…people like Ron. That's why even when facing extraordinary circumstances, we have to do our best to work within the confines of the law…it's what separates us from the bad guys, there has to be a line we won't cross."

" Ah…yea," Ron piped up, " About people like me not getting hurt, can we please get back to the whole impending trial thing? Because as much as I don't actually want to think about what's coming…not thinking about it is actually worse somehow."

Glancing at her old friend, Kim at least had the decency to look embarrassed, " Sorry Ron, I just kind of got carried away. Just one more question though Mr. Murdock. If you don't want Dr. Director listening in on your conversation with Ron…why agree to have me be the escort riding in the vehicle with you? I mean how do you know I won't just tell her everything the first chance I get anyway"

He favored her with a small smile, " Two reasons. The first is you're Ron's friend and having you here was more likely to put him at ease than any other Global Justice agent; the second is Ron trusts you to do the right thing, and I trust Ron's judgment. You've now heard my reasons for how I feel about Global Justice…if after you hear what I have to tell Ron, you still feel the need to let Dr. Director know, then I'm sure you'll do the right thing." Turning his attention to Ron, he continued, " We'll start with the obstacle. The presiding judge for this matter is a Richard Wilson Rockwaller III." He paused, waiting for the inevitable reaction.

Ron slumped back in his seat, eyes closed, " Well this tanks…I'm guessing that would be Bonnie Rockwaller's father? Figures. Goodbye freedom, hello Monkey Fist being my neighbor for the foreseeable future."

Kim's reaction, naturally, was less subdued than her friend's, " Wait up…Bonnie's dad gets to be the judge? How is that not a conflict of interest? From what I was able to get from my parents about the emergency board meeting with the PTA, he and his wife were two of the most vocal proponents of Ron's expulsion." Glancing at Ron, she winced, " Sorry about that Ron. Didn't want to bring up even more drama"

" It's no big, KP," he said, still keeping his eyes closed and head back, " at this point I mean what's one more thing? Keep going Matt if you don't mind." He let out a long sigh * well maybe I'll get to find out if being broken out of a prison is any different from being broken out of a bad guy's dungeon after all. It'll be a learning experience if nothing else*

" Confidence Ron, remember what I said about confidence," Matt reminded gently, " And you're right Ms. Possible, especially in light of his vocal support of Ron being expelled as well as his daughter's inflammatory comments to the news media about Mr. Stoppable's character, Judge Rockwaller should have done the right thing and recused himself as the presiding judge and let an impartial judge take his place. Unfortunately, it's often up to the individual judge to determine if there is enough of a conflict of interest for them to hand a trial over to someone else. Judge Rockwaller apparently doesn't feel there is such sufficient conflict of interest." He gave a small, slightly predatory smile, " Of course, that doesn't mean that the media haven't been amply tipped off…anonymously of course, to his feelings regarding Mr. Stoppable's expulsion from school and the obvious conflict of interest there…even if everything goes perfectly, any dreams he's had about moving up as a judge or entering into politics have very likely been dashed by the impropriety of this trial. Given not everyone in the jury pool shares his views…that's one point in our favor. Furthermore, by their own admission Global Justice has acknowledged that Senor Senior Junior's death was not directly caused by Ron, so the murder charge has been dropped. Another point in our favor. The remaining charges are lesser offenses in this case of aiding and abetting a known felon and obstruction of justice." He paused, " Given that this would be a first offense for Ron, and his standing in the community as a hero…I believe that we have a fairly good chance at getting him cleared…if not that, we would likely end up with a hung jury. Worst case scenario, even if everything goes wrong…we appeal on the grounds that Ron did not have an impartial judge presiding at his trial."

Ron lifted his head and looked across at his attorney, " Ok…you know, I'm actually feeling a little better about this thing. Not the whole being on trial part, but our chances part." For the first time, he actually allowed himself to be hopeful. " I mean, what's the worst that could happen?" The moment the words left his lips, he knew that it was the wrong thing to say as both Kim and Matt turned in his direction.

" Ms. Possible," Matt began dryly, " for the benefit of the visually impaired, would you please smack him in the back of the head. If I tried, I'd have to keep going until I hit my target." He grinned * sometimes I wish I could see people's reactions instead of just hearing them *

" It'd be my pleasure," she replied with a grin of her own, leaning in Ron's direction and raising her hand menacingly.

Fate, such as it was, stepped in to save Ron from the well deserved smack to the head. " We've arrived at the court house Master Murdock," Jarvis announced, bringing the limo to the curbside behind the Global Justice escort vehicle. " Though from the commotion outside you'd think we were at a concert or movie premier"

" Only if we were the main attractions…" Ron swallowed nervously, looking out the window at the crowd around the building, " Which I suppose we…or I am…" As nerve wracking as it looked out there, he was touched to see that several of his former classmates were among the throng, holding up supportive signs or banners.

" Just remember, keep your head up and if any reporters try to ask for a statement, the standard response for this situation is either direct all questions to my attorney or no comment" Matt advised.

" Gotcha," Ron replied, as Jarvis exited the vehicle and opened the passenger door. The second it was fully open, he was gone as if he'd been fired from a cannon, making a beeline for the safety of the interior of the courthouse.

" Well, at least he kept his head up," Kim managed to get our around her laughter.

Matt smiled, " He took off running, didn't he?"

" He's already inside the courthouse," she confirmed as she exited the limo and the crush of the crowd hit her, fortunately only metaphorically, " I don't think I can really blame him either," she added. The noise was just below deafening and for just a moment she felt unnaturally insecure. Her emerald eyes roamed over the crowd, widening when she caught sight of Bonnie and Josh at the front of the crowd on the right hand side of the building, along with Bonnie's older sisters and a few students she didn't recognize holding up signs advocating for a lengthy prison term. " What the hell do they think they're doing here?" She growled, her hands clenching into fists as she took a step towards the crowd, only to be stopped by a sudden hand on her shoulder.

" Easy, Ms. Possible," Matt cautioned, giving her shoulder a soft squeeze, " Remember what I said about power and responsibility? Sure…you could probably beat up whoever it is that's got you upset, but it wouldn't do you or Ron any good." He waited until her heartbeat and breathing slowed down before releasing her shoulder.

Kim looked over her shoulder at the sandy haired attorney, " Ok how did you even know? You're not a telepath or something, are you?" She smiled, doing her best to make sure that it was reflected in her voice, " I mean, I'm well aware of the whole mutants among us thing, though I've never been lucky enough to meet one who wasn't bent on world domination, so it's totally cool if you are…" she trailed off realizing that her anxiety had lead to babbling.

Murdock began heading up the stairs towards the courthouse entrance, waiting until she fell into step beside him to reply, " No…I'm not a mutant. As I told Ron earlier today, I just have really good ears. I happened to catch what you were saying, and your tone suggested you were less than pleased with someone or something. Given where we are, and the level of controversy surrounding this trial, I'm guessing that you saw or heard someone that doesn't have the best hopes for Ron walking away from this an innocent man."

Kim nodded, realized again that the attorney wouldn't be able to see her reaction and said, " Good guess. It seems Ron's not the only one a little keyed up today." She paused, " So it's true that when you lose one of your senses the others are heightened then?"

It wasn't often that Matt was surprised by people these days, but Kim managed to pull it off with that question. He stopped short, almost tripping over his own feet as he realized that she just meant in general " You could say that Miss Possible," he smiled. " Well, I should catch up with Ron and go over a few things before the trial actually starts and I'm sure you probably want to check in with security and make sure everything's ready to go." He extended his hand, " It's been a pleasure Ms. Possible."

Kim returned the handshake firmly, " Likewise Mr. Murdock, perhaps we can discuss justice again sometime."

" I'd like that Ms. Possible," he replied, " and just a thought, should you decide that Global Justice isn't the road that you want to take, you might want to consider law school. You have a pretty sharp mind." With that, he headed off for the courtroom in which the trial was to be held, leaving an oddly contemplative Kim behind him.

Inside the courtroom, Ron discovered, was only slightly less chaotic than outside as the seating area of observers was completely filled, the only remaining open seats were those at the desk for the defense team, the jury box and the judge's seat at the front of the room. Almost of their own accord, Ron's legs moved him up to the defense table and he robotically took a seat, doing everything he could to keep from dropping his head into his hands. * Confidence…just have to keep showing confidence. I'll get through this * he reminded himself. Not for the first time, he wished Sheena was there…not that he'd want her to be on trial instead of him, but at least he wouldn't feel alone. Wistfully, he twisted in his seat to look over the packed room, scanning for a friendly face, any friendly face. In doing so, he missed the unusually pale platinum blonde in the black wire rim glasses trying to catch his eye.

From her vantage point three rows behind the defense team's desk, Shego felt her heart drop just a little when Ron's gaze passed over her without stopping. Granted, with the blonde wig, heavy base make up and glasses, she shouldn't have expected him to recognize her, which was the point, but it still hurt. * Stupid meteor* She groused * Stupid green skin…stupid itchy make-up…stupid guy being noble and not turning me over to GJ…* She had been able to ascertain that last bit by giving Hego a call from a pre-paid cell phone a day after the news had broken regarding Ron's capture, and asking him to check into whether any warrants had been issued for Sheena Elizabeth Goh as she didn't dare drop back by her home without first checking to see that it was still secure. Surprisingly, it had been. * Stupid heart* she continued her internal rant, doing her best to follow Ron's gaze in the hopes that their eyes might actually meet and she could give him some measure of support. Her blood ran cold as she followed his line of sight to the far right corner of the room. In the last chair on the row, partially hidden in the shadow, was Senor Senior Senior; while she knew he had as much right to sit in on the trial as she did, it was all she could do not to ignite her hands, make her way to Ron now and blow their way out of the room and to freedom. * Easy girl * she took a deep breath * You're going to get one chance at this…and now is not the time to let your anger get the best of you.* It wasn't easy, but she kept calm, though she decided to keep an eye on the old man, just in case. " What are you up to you old schemer?" She whispered.

When Ron caught sight of Senor Senior Senior sitting calmly at the back of the room he wasn't quite sure what would kill him first, the fact that it seemed the room had suddenly lost any trace of oxygen, or his heart trying its damnedest to beat its way through his chest. The superior little smile the old man favored him with didn't help any. * I just had to ask how things could get any worse, didn't I* he wondered. Their brief staring contest was broken and air magically restored to the room by a familiar voice calling his name.

" Ron! Ron, behind you!"

He almost couldn't believe his eyes, as he turned to find both Mr. and Mrs. Dr. Possible standing behind him, leaning forward against the railing that separated the court proper from the spectator seating. " Mr. Dr. P, Mrs. Dr P., what are you guys doing here?" he asked, genuinely startled. Walking over to his side of the railing he received a hearty handshake from Dr. James Possible and a surprisingly warm hug from Anne Possible.

" We thought you could use someone in your corner son," James replied solemnly, " How're you holding up?"

" Never better," he did his best to joke, blinking quickly to try and prevent the tears he knew were welling up in his eyes form falling, " Where're the tweebs? Don't tell me they're here too?" As unlikely as he thought it was, he couldn't deny that a small part of him hoped that the boys he looked on as his younger brothers were around as well, if for no other reason than he could explain his side of things so they didn't just hear what the news felt was relevant.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Anne laughed, " No…that would just make things a little too interesting I think. I overheard them discussing plans on building a miniaturized teleportation device and sneaking it in to you for a worst case scenario. And as sweet as that was, I'm pretty sure you'd agree that the risks involved would outweigh the reward." She paused, noticing the odd looks her laughter had attracted, and decided to try and regain her composure, allowing James to finish the explanation.

" You know Ron, Kimmie-cub's not the only one who can call in favors," he said with a subdued smile of his own, " and since Mr. Barkin came to us after the meeting with the PTA and school board to let us know that if there was anything he could do to help out…."

Ron could feel his own smile, grin really, threatening to give way to a laughing fit * Oh man…Barkin the babysitter….I'm not sure who's getting the worse end of that deal, Mr. Barkin or the tweebs…nah, definitely Mr. Barkin…ok…ok…not going to laugh…* Steeling his expression into one of seriousness he replied, " Well…that almost makes up for me getting expelled…at least he can't give me any extra homework over this." He paused, dropping his head slightly, " ummm…look…you guys wouldn't happen to know just how dead I am to my parents by any chance would you? I mean, I ruined their second honeymoon for sure…"

Reaching over the railing, Anne gently lifted his head again until her blue eyes met his brown ones, " Your parents love you Ron," she stated simply, " No matter what, you're still their son…your father actually called us before we came over here to apologize that he and your mom wouldn't be able to get over here…there were just too many news vultures, as he put it, circling their house waiting for them to come out, but Rabbi Katz has been staying with your parents since they got back from their cruise and they wanted us to know they've been praying for you."

Ron blinked quickly, rubbing at his eyes, " And Rufus?" he asked hopefully, glancing around the room, as if he expected the rodent to magically appear.

The Dr.s P shared a brief look, " Sorry Ron," Anne said, " No one's seen him since you were…" she trailed off, not quite sure how to best describe his incarceration.

Ron smiled sadly and leaned forward to give Mrs. Dr. P a brief hug, " It's alright Mrs. Dr. P. I'm sure he's ok. He's pretty resourceful." Further conversation was cut off as a statuesque blond in a conservatively cut black pant suit strode through the viewing area and took a seat at the prosecution's table. " Who's that?" Ron asked, though given where she was sitting and the purpose with which she moved, he had a pretty good feeling he didn't want to know.

" That would be one Ms. Bella Juris," Matt answered from Ron's right, " District Attorney for the Tri-Cities area. And our cue that things are about to get underway, so you might want to take a seat." He pulled out one of the two chairs at the defense table for Ron and waited for him to take a seat before taking the other himself.

" Are you sure that you've never attended school in Japan, Matt?" Ron whispered, keeping his voice low enough that it would just reach the lawyer's ears, " The way you sneak around you could totally be a ninja."

Matt smiled, stretching his legs slightly below the table, " It's been said before. But no." Turning serious, he continued, " Ok…as we went over in the limo, just remember to be confident, but not cocky. And remember, if you're called to respond to a question that you feel would incriminate yourself to answer, you can plead the fifth. I wouldn't recommend using that on every question however, as tempting as it might seem, you'll come off as just trying to stonewall the prosecution and the jury will probably think you're being arrogant. "

Ron nodded, swallowing convulsively, " Right. No stonewalling, no arrogance. Any other pointers I should be aware of?"

Matt thought for a moment, " Well considering your less harmonious relationship with Judge Rockwaller's daughter, I'd recommend not making any sarcastic remarks up there."

Whatever reply Ron had in mind was cut off by the door beside the judges' bench opening and a bailiff exiting only slightly before Judge Rockwaller. " All rise," the bailiff commanded, waiting for those assembled in the courtroom to comply before continuing, " This court is now in session in the case of Middleton v. Stoppable, the honorable Judge Richard W. Rockwaller III presiding."

" Be seated," Judge Rockwaller declared, sharply rapping his gavel against the bench, " This court will now hear opening statements." He nodded towards the District attorney indicating that she should begin.

" Ladies and gentlemen," Ms. Juris began, rising from her seat and walking to the center of the floor, " We are all familiar with the defendant's exploits as a crime fighting side kick to Middleton's own Kim Possible. Further, the court does not deny that he has assisted in saving the world on more than one occasion. However, events that have recently come to light require that we look more closely at the exact nature of the defendant's role as a crime fighter. He has been tied to a known felon who participated in the recent robbery of the First National Bank of Middleton, and is implicated in the tragic death of Senor Senior Junior; events that the defendant was present for. Is he still on the side of the law? Or have years of operating outside of the law as a government sanctioned vigilante lead him to believe he is above the law? Through these proceedings, we will show that the defendant is no longer someone in whom we should blindly place our faith." With that, she returned to the prosecution desk, folding her hands in front of her neatly.

" Relax Ron," Matt whispered, leaning close briefly before rising and making his way to the floor Ms. Juris had just vacated, each tap of his cane on the floor sounding like a gunshot in the silent room. "Faith," he began, " has been referred to as the evidence of things not seen. As such, it is best left to philosophers and theologians. In a court of law, it is our duty to examine the evidence that can be seen and only that evidence. To that end, I would remind the court that my client is not on trial for murder, nor is there any evidence to show that my defendant had any hand in the robbery at the bank. In fact, my client has been nothing more than a hero…and in fact acted to thwart the bank robbery. That Team Possible was unsuccessful in that attempt does not indicate that he was acting in any capacity other than that of a hero." Like Ms. Juris before him, he then returned to his seat. " Here's where things will get interesting," her murmured just for Ron's benefit.

" The prosecution calls it's first witness," Bella's clear alto rang throughout the courtroom, " Mr. Ronald Stoppable." Almost on cue, there was a collective gasp from the assembled crowd in the room.

" Let the defendant please take the stand," Judge Rockwaller growled, casting a narrow eyed glare in Ron's direction.

Gulping, Ron stood and walked mechanically to the stand, he'd seen enough television crime shows to know what came next, and placed his left hand on the Bible proffered by the bailiff and raised his right hand.

" Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?" the bailiff intoned.

" I do," Ron replied seriously, looking nervously out at the courtroom. * Yep, much, much scarier from this position* he decided.

Judge Rockwaller gestured at him with the gavel, " Be seated Mr. Stoppable."

The district attorney waited a few moments after Ron had been seated before approaching with a falsely friendly smile, " Mr. Stoppable, how long would you say you've been fighting crime with Ms. Kimberly Possible?"

" Just a little over five years now," he replied, leaning forward towards the microphone on the witness stand.

" I see," she nodded, " and on how many occasions would you say that you've encountered the super villainess operating under the moniker of Shego?"

Ron lightly scratched the back of his neck, not quite seeing where she was going with this, " More times than I can remember."

" Understandable, I suppose," Ms. Juris noted, pacing the length of the room in front of him slowly, " It does seem that she and her employer Drew Lipsky, also known as Dr. Drakken, do attempt to take over the world on a fairly regular basis. Of the two of them, who would you say is the greater threat?" She quirked an eyebrow as if honestly interested in the reply.

Ron paused, " That would be Shego ma'am," he answered honestly.

" Are you sure about that?" Ms. Juris queried, " Isn't it Dr. Drakken who often does the planning for world domination along with the assembling of most, if not all, of the doomsday devices that have been confiscated by Global Justice and other authorities? In fact, our review of Shego's criminal record would indicate that she's nothing more than a hired hand…a common thief…granted she has some specialized skills…what would make her the grater threat?"

From her position in the crowd, Shego seethed, * The wig and make up I can put up with…but for that…blonde bimbo to call me nothing more than a common thief? I'll show her just what my specialized skills can do * Tempting as it was, she managed to keep from igniting her plasma and blowing her cover, it wasn't time, not yet. And she had to admit, she was curious as to what Ron would say.

" Ummm…the world still seems to be pretty free, doesn't it? I'd say that shows just how much of a threat Dr. Drakken is," Ron quipped, then his brain caught up with his mouth. * Shit…that probably wasn't the right thing to say*. Judging by the tightening of Matt's lips into a near invisible line, Ron had a feeling that his counsel agreed.

" Watch your mouth Mr. Stoppable," Judge Rockwaller warned, " I won't hesitate to add contempt of court to the list of charges your facing. Do I make myself clear?"

" Yes sir," Ron squeaked, doing his best to keep from trying to shrivel into his seat.

Juris continued her line of questioning without missing a beat, " So what is it that makes her any more dangerous than your everyday purse snatcher on the street?"

Intellectually, Ron knew that she was just trying to get a rise out of him, but it was still hard to hear someone talk about the woman he loved like that. " Well, there are those specialized skills that you mentioned. Not every common purse snatcher can hurl plasma at people," he paused, " But it's more than her powers, or her agility…she's resourceful, quick witted and can think on her feet better than just about anyone I know. Then there's her determination…once she sets her mind on something, there's nothing that she'll let stand in her way."

Ms. Juris turned to meet his eyes with a smirk, " If she's the greater threat as you've alluded to, then why not turn her over to the authorities? Every moment she's allowed to walk free, there are countless innocents who could be in danger. As a crime fighter, shouldn't that concern you?"

Ron gulped, his heart pounding in his chest. At the beginning of their relationship, he'd had those same thoughts, which is why he was grateful for their policy of not talking shop on their dates. " At this time, I'd like to plead the fifth." Ron responded coolly.

" Hardly a heroic response, Mr. Stoppable," Juris chided, " trying to save your own skin by not answering a simple question."

" Objection," Matt exclaimed, rising to his feet, " You honor, my client has a constitutionally protected right not to answer any question he does not wish to. The prosecution is badgering him in an attempt to circumvent that right."

Judge Rockwaller scowled, clearly not happy about the objection, however, he couldn't deny that Murdock had, " Sustained," he growled out, " Keep to an appropriate line of questioning counselor."

Ms. Juris nodded curtly, " I withdraw the question your honor." She turned her attention back to Ron, "Let's discuss your relationship with Shego then. You haven't always been adversarial towards her have you Mr. Stoppable? And please, remember you're under oath."

Ron sighed, " No, it hasn't always been adversarial. But I'd rather we not discuss my sex life if you don't mind. I don't see how that's relevant." He glanced nervously towards the judge, mindful of the threat of a contempt charge hanging over his head.

Juris came close to a grin, " I wasn't speaking of your current relationship, Mr. Stoppable, though your statement does shed some light on your reluctance to turn Shego over to the authorities. I was referring to a period of time approximately two years ago…I believe you were going by the name Zorpox at the time…and you yourself demonstrated quite the capacity for evil during this time…even going so far as to threaten the safety of the world. Shego assisted you in that attempt, is that correct?"

Ron felt himself flush, " That's correct Ms. Juris" he answered.

" So who's to say that the professional relationship ended after that little escapade? After all, of all the villains to attempt world domination, your Zorpox persona came the closest to actually succeeding. Perhaps that's why you've had such luck at foiling Dr. Drakken's plots, Shego recognized your potential and was just grooming you until you were ready to try again?"

Once again Matt surged to his feet, " Objection, speculation!"

Judge Rockwaller sighed, " Sustained." He sent a barely controlled glared towards the district attorney, " Counselor, do you have any further relevant questions?"

Ms. Juris smiled slightly, " None at this time your honor." She walked back towards her desk, content in the knowledge that despite Murdock's objections, she'd planted seeds of doubt in the mind of the jury.

Matt rose from his seat and headed before the bench, " Let the record show," he began, " that regarding the Zorpox incident, Mr. Stoppable was cleared of any wrongdoing and furthermore, had been proven by Global Justice to have not have been in control of his own facilities at that time. But while we're on the subject of attitude adjustment…Mr. Stoppable, earlier this year you spent some additional time in the company of Shego…or as she was referring to herself at that time, Ms. Go…a substitute teacher at Middleton High School, is that correct?"

Beneath her caked on foundation, Shego could feel her cheeks burning hotter than her plasma ever could. * Well this is just embarrassing * she thought * If that attorney wasn't trying to help my Ron, I'd have to kick his ass…he must be pretty well connected to have found out about that…unless Ron mentioned it to him at some point.* Somehow, she didn't think that was likely the case.

" Yes," Ron answered, relaxing slightly.

Matt smiled, noting the way Ron's heartbeat slowed and his breathing grew more even, " And how would you describe your interactions with her at that time?"

Ron sighed, for the first time thankful that Shego wasn't around to hear what he was about to say, " It was a little weird," he admitted, " Not in a bad way at all. Just surprising, I hadn't realized that she could be so sweet and caring. Not just with me…but with KP…errr..Kim Possible…and just about everyone she met. As a matter of fact, she…she kind of reminded me of an older Kim."

It was Ms. Juris's turn to object, " Objection your honor, relevance?"

Despite her disdain for the blonde district attorney, Shego found herself seconding the objection. * Oh…he is so dead when we get him out of here* A cat that ate the canary grin appeared on her lips as she thought of a couple very pleasant ways she could contribute to his demise in a slow, and not at all painful manner.

Judge Rockwaller nodded," I must concur with the prosecution counselor; unless you can show relevance…" It was clear that the judge was hoping that Matt wouldn't be able to.

" Certainly your honor," Matt responded calmly, " The prosecution has demonstrated an intention to make my client's character the subject of this trial and not the facts of the case against him. I'm giving evidence to the contrary by showing that no one is all good or all evil."

Judge Rockwaller glanced around the courtroom and saw several heads nodding in agreement and cursed inwardly as he saw that it extended into the jury. There was enough scandal surrounding this trial as it was, if he allowed the objection to stand in light of Murdock's proving the relevance of his line of questioning it would appear even more so that he was personally against Stoppable receiving a fair trial. " The objection…is overruled…you may continue Mr. Murdock."

" Thank you, your honor," Matt nodded with a small smile, " Perhaps we should discuss some of the facts of this case. Mr. Stoppable…regarding the recent robbery of the First National Bank of Middleton. Were you aware of Shego's intention to rob this bank?"

" No," Ron answered, swallowing hard.

Matt nodded in understanding, " And when you arrived at the bank to find her in the process of robbing it…what was your reaction?"

" I tried to stop her," he replied, " I failed. As much as I hate to admit it I'm still not in the same league as a fighter as Shego is, and given the fact that Dr. Drakken was using some sort of upgraded syntho-drones that didn't immediately turn to goop when punctured…I was pretty much outclassed."

" I see." Matt slowly paced the floor, " Tell me Ron, do you receive any sort of pay or any other compensation for your efforts as a crime fighter?"

Ron looked puzzled for a moment, " Of course not; unless you count my allowance from my parents. I can't even touch my royalty checks as creator of the Naco until I graduate from high school…which seeing as I've been expelled, doesn't look like will ever happen now." He couldn't help but be a little bitter about it.

" So," Matt continued, " You receive no pay for risking your life to help protect not only innocent people, but their property as well. Where were the police? Or bank security? Those who have been paid and trained to handle such situations and the risks that are associated with them?"

" I didn't see any security inside the bank," Ron answered honestly, " I spent a little too much time trying not to get fried. And the police were outside. I guess they were sealing off the building or something."

" Let me recap," Matt stated, " there was no obvious security inside the bank and the police chose to let two teenagers do their job for them; not even bothering to provide any sort of back up. Interesting use of tax payer funds."

There was a murmur of assent that swept through the court, broken suddenly by the sharp scrape of Ms. Juris's chair being pushed back, " Objection, your honor, the defense counsel is attempting to prejudice the jury."

" Sustained," Judge Rockwaller stated, " Mr. Murdock, the way in which the town of Middleton chooses to allocate its funds is not relevant to this trial."

" I withdraw the statement you honor," Matt replied. " So, Mr. Stoppable, since you receive no pay for your services, I presume it was Shego who was paying for the hotel room where Mr. Senior Junior lost his life. I mean she had just pulled off a rather impressive bank robbery, she certainly would have had the funds."

Ron blushed * Thanks for sharing your strategy here Matt…this could be embarrassing * " Ahhh…no…I was going to myself….not that I would have chosen the honeymoon suite. Not yet anyway…" he trailed off, realizing he was getting a glare from the judge, " But the concierge decided that we weren't up to the standards of that hotel and insulted Shego…I simply asked to speak with the manager…who in the name of customer service, offered us the room to keep me from making any disparaging remarks online about the service the hotel offered."

" So if I understand correctly," Matt began, " there was no indication that Shego used any ill gotten funds while in your company? Do you know what was done with any of the stolen money or property?"

" That would be no to both," Ron answered, wondering just how much longer he'd be under scrutiny.

" Let the record reflect," Matt stated, " the defendant has neither aided Shego in her attempts to commit crimes, nor does he know what happened to the funds stolen in the Middleton Bank robbery. The defense at this time, has no further questions for Mr. Stoppable." With that, he turned and made his way back to his desk.

" Prosecution, do you have any additional questions?" Judge Rockwaller asked

" No your honor," Ms. Juris replied smoothly.

Rockwaller sighed heavily, " Then the defendant may take his seat."

Relieved, Ron slowly made his way from the stand, doing his best to keep his legs from visibly shaking * Well…at least the worst is over. I never want to go through that again.* Reaching the defense table, he pulled his chair back and sat down, for once without his usual slouch, as tempting as it was to just fold over.

Once more, Ms. Juris took to the floor, " At this time, the prosecution would like to call Ms. Kimberly Anne Possible to the stand."

Ron's head whipped around, he hadn't even noticed when Kim had entered the room, but there she was rising from the back row, just to the right of the doorway. " Oh great," he muttered, " this just keeps getting better and better." As he was turning back to face the front of the room, he caught sight of a platinum blonde in wire rim glasses glaring daggers at the redhead making her way to the witness stand. * Huh * he mused, * That's odd. Wonder what she has against KP?* Even weirder, was the fact that when the blonde caught him looking at her, she smiled at him and gave a wink. * Oh great…I've somehow managed to attract yet another one.*

Sheena smiled, her heart beating wildly in her chest as she finally got some eye contact with Ron, and the fact that he looked genuinely confused was more than a little amusing if she was honest with herself. * Hey…he deserves a little confusion after saying he saw something in common between me and the princess…the fact that he's pretty cute when he's confused is just a bonus." She shook her head gently * Head in the game girl. There's still a plan to complete*

Turning back to the court Ron just couldn't shake the feeling that something odd was going on. * Guess I should probably pay more attention to what's important and not random women flirting with me* he pondered as he realized he'd missed Kim's being sworn in * Not that it's in her to lie, not after that disaster with the Centurion project* he thought.

" So, Ms. Possible," Ms Juris smiled, " How long have you known the defendant?"

" Since Pre-K," Kim replied calmly, " He's my best friend and has been pretty much my whole life."

Juris nodded as if she hadn't expected any other answer, " So, you'd probably know him fairly well. If you don't mind, could you please tell the court what you can regarding his relationship with the villainess Shego?"

Kim fidgeted in her seat, looking everywhere but at Ron, " I honestly don't know much about their relationship per se," she admitted, " I was pretty much in the dark about it until it made the news. I know he's found her attractive since the first time he saw her picture years ago…"

Ms. Juris feigned shock, " Really? You say he's your best friend and yet he kept his relationship with one of your arch rivals, some would say the greatest of your enemies, completely hidden from you. Who knows how long he'd kept it hidden?" She quickly moved on before Murdock could object again. " Miss Possible, can I call you Kim?"

" Uh, sure," Kim replied, hesitantly.

" Thank you Kim," Bella smiled, " Now that we're a little closer, let's be honest for a moment here. The defendant is an attractive young man…has he had much luck with the young women you associate with at school?"

Ron shuddered * Note to self…must find a way to turn off the charm…first Sheena…then Kim….and now the blonde in the glasses and a woman who's job it is to make sure I don't see the light of day again anytime soon * Turning his attention back to the proceedings, he couldn't help but wonder what Kim would say and where the district attorney was going with this line of questioning.

Kim blushed, " Well…no…not really, there have been a couple girls…but no real significant relationships with anyone in high school…to be honest, most girls are kind of put off by his…unique personality." At this she looked Ron at the defense table, silently asking forgiveness for her statement. * You know we could change that lack of luck with ladies Ron…if you're willing to give us a chance * she thought.

" So it's conceivable," Ms. Juris started, " that if a woman the defendant was already attracted to showed some signs of returning that attraction, she could easily manipulate him to her advantage…tell me…during the bank robbery, was it you or the defendant who actually spent most of the time facing off with Shego?"

" Ron," Kim replied with a proud smile, " he got some pretty good blows in too even if he was in over his head."

Ms. Juris nodded, a small smile playing across her lips, " And would you say that this is standard procedure?" Kim shook her head silently in response. " So despite the fact that the defendant is not nearly as skilled a combatant as yourself or Shego…he attacks her, valiantly trying to stop her no doubt…and yet a short time later, she escapes with Dr. Drakken and the contents of the bank's vault….with neither of them suffering any serious injury. Interesting." Sending her gaze around the room, she could see that several heads in the audience were nodding, obviously following her line of reasoning to its logical conclusion.

Before Kim could reply to the implied accusation, the all too familiar ringing of the Kimmunicator sounded from her pocket. Glancing up, she saw Judge Rockwaller glaring down at her disdainfully and her cheeks colored. * Gee…and I thought Bonnie just got her attitude from her sisters…*

" Miss Possible," Rockwaller growled, " did you believe that you were exempt from the restrictions against electronics in my courtroom?"

" No sir," she answered meekly. Still she made no move to either turn off the device or answer it.

To everyone's surprise, it was Matt who came to her rescue, rising from his chair, " Your honor, it's common knowledge that Ms. Possible is often called upon to save the world. Given that she is once again being contacted, it is safe to surmise that her services might be required elsewhere. I move for a five minute recess, so that she can take that call."

Loathe as he was to admit it, the judge recognized that the attorney had a point. " Very well. This court is now in recess for five minutes," he glared at the young woman on the witness stand, " You may take that call Ms. Possible, but in the future, remember you are not above the law, no matter how many times you might save the world."

" Yes sir," Kim said solemnly before leaving the stand and racing out of the courtroom.

Much to Ron's surprise, Matt stood and began to follow her, " Uh Matt…is everything alright?" he asked.

" Everything is fine Ronald," he reassured with a gentle smile, " I'm just going to get a drink of water." Without giving Ron a chance to reply, he continued on his way after the young redhead.

" Water?" Ron puzzled, " but there's a pitcher of it right here." He glanced at the untouched pitcher at the far edge of the desk and two empty cups. Something just wasn't adding up. Then again, that seemed to be the theme for the day. " Well, no use in letting this go to waste." He grabbed the pitcher and poured himself a cup.

Outside of the courtroom, Kim ducked into a recessed doorway for privacy before pulling the Kimmunicator from a back pocket, " It better be an important sitch Wade," she whispered, " I was on the stand when you called. So what's up? Did you find Shego? It should be her on trial instead of Ron."

The technological prodigy shook his head, " No sign of her on any level Kim. But you might be interested in seeing this." The screen split, showing Wade on the right half and on the left, what appeared to be a bank ledger with a rather large recent deposit. " When it was revealed that Bonnie's father would be the judge in Ron's trial and refused to acknowledge the inherent conflict of interest there…I did a little digging. It appears that there's been a two million dollar deposit into Judge Rockwaller's private bank account today, transferred in from an account in the Cayman Islands."

Kim gasped, she didn't like Judge Rockwaller to begin with, mainly because of how much he reminded Kim of his daughter, but to find out it appeared he was on the take? Especially after his little lecture to her about not being above the law…that was interesting. " Can you trace the owner of the account inf the Cayman Islands?" she asked.

Wade grinned, leaning back and resting both hands behind his head smugly, " Conventional wisdom would say that it's damn near impossible to trace the owners of such accounts…which is why certain individuals who wish to keep their dirty deeds hidden keep their accounts there. Of course, conventional wisdom has never been a problem for me…an equivalent amount was transferred to the account in the Caymans from the Swiss account of one Senor Senior Senior before it went to Judge Rockwaller's account." He held up a hand to forestall any comment, " Oh, it gets better Kim." His half of the screen was replaced by a stream of colored security camera footage with a date stamp six days prior, " This is the interior of the clubhouse at the Middleton Country Club" Wade explained, " See anyone familiar at the bar?" The camera zoomed in to focus on two very familiar figures.

A slow smile split Kim's features as she looked over all the evidence that Wade had presented her with, " You rock extra hard Wade!" She exclaimed. " Can you print some screen captures from the video and a copy of the bank information? Please and thank you!" She was so caught up in waiting for the Kimmunicator's miniaturized printer to finish its job that she didn't notice Matt Murdock's approach.

" Is everything alright Ms. Possible?," he asked, genuinely concerned, " If you need to leave, I'm sure we could get Judge Rockwaller to grant a continuance of the trial at a time that the world isn't in any sort of danger."

" Actually Mr. Murdock," Kim said, " I don't think that's going to be necessary." She grabbed the evidence just as it printed and turned back to the Kimmunicator, " Wade…can I get another copy printed in brail? Please and thank you again." Moments later the Kimmunicator once again began printing.

" Brail?" Matt asked, feigning confusion, " Is there something you want to tell me Ms. Possible?" He was slightly surprised when he felt her sliding a few pages of print outs into his free hand.

" I'll explain on the way back to the courtroom," she exclaimed, doing her best to conceal her exuberance , " I mean, it's almost been five minutes. We don't want to keep Judge Rockwaller waiting." With that she turned and headed back towards the courtroom, leaving Matt to follow her.

" No," he said with a small smile as he followed the teen hero, " We certainly wouldn't want to do that." He'd of course overheard the conversation between Kim and her young associate, and was in no small part amazed at her capacity for doing the right thing.

Inside the courtroom, Sheena was getting antsy…well more antsy, she knew Dr. Drakken was working as fast as he could to get everything up and running but it was oh so tempting to blow things just a little bit early and escape her own way with Ron. After all there were only three armed guards and the bailiff to contend with, and she'd had far worse odds before. Grimacing, she checked her watch * Ok…if every thing goes right, he should be here in just a few more minutes…then it'll be time to party…I can wait…doesn't mean I can't have a little fun with Ron first…* She began to rise from her seat to see if she could confuse him even further with a little anonymous flirting when Kim Possible came rushing back in to the room, vaulting the railing and returning to the witness stand. * Damn it…leave it to Possible to ruin my fun* she frowned, lowering herself back into her chair to wait.

" Welcome back, Ms. Possible," Judge Rockwaller ground out, " I trust the world can hold on for a little longer?" Without waiting for her reply, he continued, " And where is Mr. Murdock? If he's not back in the next minute, his client won't be the only one I would consider in contempt of.." He was cut off by the door opening once more.

" I'm right here your honor," Matt said confidently, " ready to go when you are."

Judge Rockwaller twirled his gavel between his thumb and index finger briefly, considering a contempt charge against the attorney just for the smug attitude. With a sigh, he dismissed the idea and brought his gavel down again with a sharp rap, " Court is once again in session, all be seated." With a nod towards the prosecutor, he continued, "If you're ready to continue your questioning counselor, the floor is again yours."

Ms. Juris rose from her seat and headed towards the witness stand when she was interrupted by Matt's voice, " Actually your honor…I'd like to meet with you and Ms. Juris at the bench?"

For a moment, Judge Rockwaller felt a ball of fear settle in the pit of his stomach at the request. * It's just nerves * he told himself, his eyes involuntarily drawn towards Senor Senior Senior seated at the back of the room * there's no way he knows of our deal*. " Your request is denied Mr. Murdock," he replied imperiously, " Your client has already rejected the deal offered to him by Global Justice…this court will not allow him to reconsider just because your case isn't going the way you'd like." He turned again to the district attorney " Continue, Ms. Juris," he commanded.

Once again he was interrupted by Matt, " Well then your honor," Matt smiled, rising to join Ms. Juris on the floor, " I move for a mistrial!" The announcement sent a gasp of shock throughout the court.

" On what grounds Mr. Murdock?" the Judge challenged.

Matt walked over to Ms. Juris and handed her a copy of the evidence provided to him, " On the grounds of judicial corruption," he paused, the next words to slip from his lips dripping with disdain, " your honor." He turned to face the assembled audience and jury, " The documents I have in my possession, and have provided a copy of to Ms. Juris, show clearly that Judge Rockwaller has received payment in the amount of two million dollars, transferred into his account from the account of Senor Senior Senior. As such it is beyond obvious as to why he refused to recuse himself from this case despite a clear conflict of interest in overseeing this trial; it is equally obvious that he did not intend for my client to receive the fair trial to which he is legally entitled." He paused again, " This evidence was provided to me just recently, by an agent of Global Justice, Miss Kim Possible."

At this revelation the room burst to life, everyone seemingly speaking at once. It took several sharp raps of Judge Rockwaller's gavel to gain their attention, " Order. I will have order in my courtroom," he shouted, his voice near panic. " Anyone can print off any thing they like Mr. Murdock," he said, trying to regain control of his voice, " that doesn't make it proof. I will not have you grandstanding in my courtroom when you have no proof."

The sudden silence was broken by a slow clapping, and from the back of the room, Senor Senior Senior stood, " Ah…but they do have proof your honor," he smiled coldly, his blue eyes shining with a cruel amusement, " I admit that it's true. I had the payment wired over this morning from my personal account in Switzerland. A mere two million dollars is but chump change for me."

" What are you doing?" Judge Rockwaller yelled, not bothering to hide his panic anymore, " You've ruined me! Why?"

Senor Senior Senior slowly made his way to the center of the courtroom, " Because, you promised a service you could not deliver. You promised me justice for my son's death…you never mentioned that your court system is just as inept as the local police," he turned to face Ms. Juris, " no offence to you dear lady. You have tried your best." There was a brief pause, and he turned to face Ron, still seated behind the defense table. " If I cannot count on the court system for justice, I suppose I'll accept vigilante justice…I trust the irony won't be lost on you." Without taking his eyes from Ron, he raised his voice to be sure the whole room could hear him, " Officers…if you please, you know what I'm paying you for." The three uniformed police officers and the bailiff all pulled their service weapons from their holsters, two turning to cover Kim and the other two covering Ron. " The only way this would be better would be if Shego were here to receive her measure of Justice as well."

Sheena was prepared to fire up and show the old man just what justice was when there was a slight buzz from her jacket pocket. * Guess the doc's in position * she thought with a smile, pulling the small communication device from her pocket and sending the coded reply message of acknowledgement. * Well…you wanted Shego, you're going to get her*.

Moments after the message was sent, the double doors to the court were blown inward off their hinges, amazingly, not striking anyone in the room. When the smoke cleared, Shego stood in the remains of the doorway both hands alight with plasma. " I hear you were looking for me old man?" she sneered. " Well here I am." With that, she flung both arms forward, sending dual bolts of plasma into the ceiling above the center of the courtroom, cracking it and sending debris plummeting towards the floor.

Ron didn't have time to bother asking what his love thought she was doing, as there was a large chunk of ceiling heading directly for Matt. Calling on his mystical monkey powers, Ron dove over the defense table and tackled Matt clear of the debris. " You ok Matt?" he asked, coming to his feet and reaching down to assist the attorney to his feet as well.

" Never better," Matt replied, " How're the others?"

Looking around Ron saw that somehow even Senor Senior Senior had managed to avoid the falling chunks of building * Pretty spry for an old guy* he mused. From what he could tell, Kim had been able to get Ms. Juris free of the debris path as well, presumably by tackling her as well, if the light coating of dust on the two women was any indication. * Ok…head in the game Ron…no time to think about KP tackling another woman…and not just because Shego would fry your ass beyond recognition…* he reminded himself. Sadly it seemed the bailiff and officers had also avoided harm, and were still keeping both him and Kim covered. * Damnit…of course the few competent police in Middleton have to be on a villain's payroll…* The fact that they hadn't simply opened fire without the specific command from their employer just showed how professional they were. Continuing his scan of the room, he didn't see a sign of Shego, though the gaping hole where the doors once were gave him an idea. " Everyone seems to be fine Matt," he answered, " Now I'm going to make sure they stay that way." He took a deep breath to calm himself before turning to face the elderly villain who was watching everything with a slightly amused smile. " Look, Senor Senior Senior, it's me you want…let everyone else go and I'm willing to stay here…that way no other innocents will be hurt."

Senor Senior Senior rubbed his chin thoughtfully, " Agreed. I would like Ms. Possible to stay around however, simply as a witness. I have no grudge towards her at this time."

Ron looked past Senor Senior Senior and met Kim's eyes, asking her silently if she agreed to the terms as well. Catching her slight nod, he released the breath he wasn't aware that he was holding, " Alright you've got a deal." He turned to face the crowded room, surprised no one had thought of leaving on their own. " Everybody out! Now!" Almost as one, the crowd rushed the gaping hole in the wall, " Matt," he said urgently, " You have to get out of here too…thanks for your help…but this is something I have to face myself. Right now I need you to make sure Kim's parents get to safety."

Matt nodded, " Be careful Ron." With an ease uncommon for a blind man, he made his way to the railing behind the defense table where Mr. and Mrs. Possible still stood , "Drs. Possible…if you don't mind, I know this is difficult, but we should leave this to the professionals. I'm sure Kim and Ron will be alright." Surprisingly they didn't protest as he ushered them to and through the hole in the wall. He waited until he was sure that the Possibles were convinced he'd continue to follow them, before he broke off and made his way to an access stairway that would lead to the roof * I'll make sure that they're alright* he thought as he retracted his walking stick and began pulling off his shirt as he made his way up the stairs, revealing the red costume beneath it.

In the almost empty courtroom, Ron couldn't figure out why he hadn't been ventilated yet. " Ok…you held up your end of the bargin Senor Senior Senior," he sighed, " I'm going to uphold mine. I'm still here…so…go ahead, get your justice overwith." He looked over the old man's shoulder to see Kim, " Hey KP…the next time you run into Shego…could you tell her I'm sorry. I just don't see a way out of this one right now…and if I'm not going to make it out of here…tell her I love her."

Kim felt the wind knocked out of her, she'd seen Ron down before…but never so far down that he was willing to just let himself be shot. * Got to admit…it does look pretty bleak…but we've seen bleak before*. She opened her mouth to tell him that it would be alright, but nothing came out…she tried again " I'll tell her," she said, it wasn't what she'd planned, but there were some things better left unsaid at times like this.

" Well, get it over with," Ron growled, " this is what you wanted isn't it?"

" There is still an innocent here," Senor Senior Senior replied simply, nodding to someone over Ron's right shoulder, " besides they say revenge is a dish best served cold."

Ron couldn't resist, and looked over his shoulder to see that strange blonde woman who had winked at him earlier hadn't fled with the rest of the crowd. * Strange* he thought. Stranger still was the way she gracefully vaulted the railing that separated her from the floor of the courtroom and came down neatly beside him. There were only two women he knew who could pull a move like that while wearing dress clothing and not have any problems. * No way* he thought.

" Who said I'm an innocent?" She asked sarcastically, reaching up to pull he wig from her head and finally let her raven tresses down, while simultaneously igniting her other hand. " Hello lover," she said warmly, casting a smile in Ron's direction.

Senor Senior Senior clapped delightedly, " Ah…an excellent ruse. I see that your skills have only improved since your time as my late son's tutor Shego. It's a pity that they will not have any more time to improve further."

" Yea…says you," she shot back, flinging a bolt of plasma at one of the uniformed officers who had Kim covered, the force of the blast throwing him into wall and effectively taking him out of the fight. " Gee…three on three seems a little bit more fair, wouldn't you say Princess?"

Before Kim could respond, a red baton came sailing in through the hole in the roof, knocking the gun from the hand of the bailiff who still had Kim covered, before ricocheting to strike the officer covering Shego's arm and causing him to discharge his weapon wildly into the foot of the other officer covering Ron. " I'd say it's even more fair now," came a deep voice as a man dressed what appeared to be red spandex with devil horns dropped through the hole in the ceiling in time to catch the baton on the rebound.

" Well, I'm not one to look a gift horse in the mouth," Kim quipped, leaping into a kick to the head of the guard in front of her, rendering him unconscious.

Shego smiled, it felt odd to be on the same side as Pumpkin, without having her attitude radically switched around, " You know…I've never gotten that statement..," stepping forward quickly, she grabbed the arm of the guard in front of her and twisted, dislocating it, before spinning and driving her elbow into the bridge of the man's nose, taking him down.

Impressed as he was that Shego and Kim seemed to be getting along for the moment, Ron couldn't help but bemoan his lack of targets, " Awwww…come on…are you guys really going to leave me the guy who got shot in the foot or the old man? That's not much of a choice…"

Unnoticed in all of the commotion, Judge Rockwaller still sat behind the bench in shock, his career…his life, was ruined now. He'd be facing jail time, his accounts would likely be frozen by global justice and seized, and there's no way Melissa would stay with him, she and the girls had become too accustomed to a certain lifestyle. It was gone…all of it…because of Stoppable. His Bonnie was right, Possible and Stoppable both were menaces. Without thinking about his actions, he grabbed the nearest weapon to him, his gavel, and hurled it at Ron's head, hoping to inflict at least some small amount of pain on the young man who had almost single handedly destroyed his life.

Ron caught motion out of the corner of his eye, and reacted on instinct, calling on his mystical monkey powers once more, he dodged the gavel and almost faster than the eye could see, grabbed the handle of it in mid-flight before flinging it back in the direction from which it came, striking Judge Rockwaller in the head and knocking him out. Ron cringed, " Aww…man…I just got cleared and I go and commit another crime…this time I've assaulted a judge. This tanks…I did get cleared, right."

" Technically, yes," Shego smiled, " thanks to the doctrine of double jeopardy, you can't be tried twice for the same offense…and since this was a mistrial, you're in the clear. As for the committing another crime…eh, it grows on you."

" I'm not sure he finds that as reassuring as you mean it, Shego," the crimson clad stranger said, a slight smile on his lips, " as for the assaulting a judge, I didn't see anything. Did you Ms. Possible?"

" Not a thing," Kim agreed, " and it's not that I'm not grateful for the assist, but who are you?"

To her surprise, it was Senor Senior Senior who answered, " If I'm not mistaken Ms. Possible, this gentleman goes by Daredevil, though he has also been called the man without fear. One of my old students in evil, Wilson Fisk, has gone on and on about how you've disrupted his operations in New York…to be fair, I always assumed that he was making you up to try and make me feel better about constantly being foiled by a teenage girl…"

" Hmmm…thank you, I think," Daredevil replied, sounding oddly amused, " Somehow I don't have any problems with being compared to this particular teenage girl, sounds like she's got some serious potential."

Whatever reply Kim had in mind was cut off by a rope ladder dropping through the ceiling, and on the bottom rung was one naked mole rat. " Ta da!" Rufus chirped proudly before jumping down and scrambling up Sheena's leg and up to her shoulder.

" Good job little guy," She praised with a smile, she walked over and grabbed the ladder, " looks like our ride is here Ron. Time to scram before the Middleton police realize that their job here is done and come in to clean up the mess." Despite the cockiness of her words, she could feel her heart pounding in her chest, waiting for his response, " Kim…you and devil boy here can make sure they lock up Senor Senior Senior and his little friends, right?"

Kim looked from Shego with Rufus perched on her shoulder, to a clearly torn Ron and back * Ok…Rufus likes her…Ron says he loves her…and for once, she called me Kim…no nicknames, no teasing…maybe she really isn't all that bad. * With a sigh, she knew what her answer had to be, " Sure thing Shego. You guys get going…I'll send him along in just a second, I promise." Surprisingly enough Shego simply nodded and began climbing to the waiting hover jet.

" KP…I.." Ron began uncertainly, only to be cut off by her finger on his lips.

" Shhh…it's ok Ron," She said, lowering her finger and smiling softly, " You love her…and something tells me she loves you too…so go…I'll be alright." Stepping close, she hugged him tightly and whispered, " and you let her know that if she breaks your heart there is nowhere on this planet she'll be able to hide from me. Now go."

Without waiting for a reply, she pushed him towards the ladder and walked off to check on the knocked out guards and judge. Ron watched her go quietly and then turned to Daredevil, " You know…all I can say is thanks." He offered his hand and was mildly surprised when the masked man actually took it.

" No thanks are necessary, Mr. Stoppable. It's all part of the job," He inclined his head in the direction in which Kim had walked off, " Don't worry about her. She'll be alright…she's a hero…and so are you, don't forget that. Now I believe you have a flight to catch." With that he stepped behind Senor Senior Senior just in case the old man decided to make a run for it before the authorities arrived.

With one final look around the courtroom, Ron climbed up the ladder, and was helped in to the hover jet by Sheena, a remarkably relieved smile on her face. " Glad you decided to come along," she said before claiming his lips with her own. Breaking the kiss reluctantly, she turned to Dr. Drakken, who looked strangely green for someone with blue tinted skin. " Better punch it doc, won't be long before Global Justice decides to send in some air support…oh, and don't forget, we need to pick up my new little sister on the way"

Grumbling something almost unintelligible about bossy female sidekicks who don't know their place, Dr. Drakken pressed a control on the consol, activating the tracking beacon he'd impanted in Shego Mark 2…or as he had come to think of her, the one who wasn't so damn lippy. Opening the throttle all the way, they raced off in the direction the synthodrone had taken in her escape from the courthouse.

" Might as well have a seat Ron," Sheena purred to her still stunned looking boyfriend, before pushing him down into the co-pilot's seat and taking her place on his lap. " So…what was that you said about me reminding you of an older Kim?" She asked with a raised eyebrow and dangerous smirk.


	17. Chapter 17

Bad As She Wants Me to Be

Chapter 17: Bed knobs and broom closets

Author: RoguesKnight

Rating: M/MA language, violence, sex…all that good stuff. Not for the kiddies.

Disclaimer: Ron, Shego, et al, are not mine. You know the drill. I own the plot, the mouse owns the characters. Hmmm…guess that includes ol' horn head now that Disney bought Marvel.

Author's (brief) note: yes I'm alive. The world's worst case of writer's block, more computer issues, and job stress like you wouldn't believe and one house purchase contributed to this lengthy delay. To those who've kept asking that I finish this, I thank you and ask your forgiveness for the length of time it took.

Ron's mind went into overdrive as he tried to come up with an answer that wouldn't end up with him being tossed from the hovercraft. " Ummm…" he stalled, scratching the back of his neck and glancing at the mole rat on his love's shoulder for help. Rufus shrugged helplessly and hopped from his shoulder perch to the craft's dashboard. * Great * Ron mused * of all the tight spots we've found ourselves in, he picks this one not to have a handy solution ready. * " Ok…so, older was the wrong word choice." he hedged, offering a small smile, " What I meant was, you know, more mature…you know, not as flighty as a teenager." He held his breath, not quite daring to believe that it would be an acceptable answer; a barely muffled derisive snort from the pilot's chair suggested that Drakken didn't think it would work either. * Well…at least I won't die a virgin * he thought * and hey, I'll probably pass out before I hit the ground, so I probably won't feel it either…* With that he closed his eyes, preparing for the end.

Shego allowed herself a tight smile as the seconds dragged out without answering him * May as well let him sweat a little * she mused * besides, he's cute when he's terrified *. A passing thought of other ways she could make him sweat shot through her mind, but those would have to wait until there wasn't an audience. " Nice try," she drawled out, pinning him back to the seat with a slender finger pressed to his chest, " but no dice. You're just going to have to make it up to me later." It was all she could do to keep from laughing as Ron opened his eyes, one at a time, as though he suspected a trap in the offing. * Gotta admit * she smirked mentally * the boy's got good survival instincts*

Seeing as he would live another day, Ron released his breath in a quiet sigh, feeling some of his old sense of humor return as the stress of the past few days drained away, " Looking forward to it," he replied, wrapping his arms around her and drawing her close, " In fact…how about when we get to wherever it is we're going, you and I sneak off and I can start. I mean, I have been locked up for a while …" Before he could elaborate further, he was interrupted by the sound of both Rufus and Dr. Drakken gagging. Looking over Shego's shoulder towards the pilot's side of the hovercraft, he smiled innocently as he took in the rodent and scientist's near identical expressions of disgust." What? Was it something I said?"

Drakken exchanged a brief look with his little mole rat buddy before turning his attention to the young man, " First," he began, careful to keep the annoyance to a level Shego would tolerate without resorting to violence, " The wherever we're going, is my lair. As such there is to be no hanky panky. I might be able to find a broom closet at the total opposite end of the building from her room that you could stay in temporarily, but that's it." Noticing the way his sidekick's eyes narrowed dangerously and recalling quite vividly the threats of bodily harm his last attempt to regulate her personal life had resulted in, he hurried to continue, " and another thing…we've caught up to your "new little sister" Shego, I'm lowering the ladder for her now, but if you two might be so kind as to disentangle yourselves and help her in, we can get on our way before the authorities can catch up." He punctuated the statement with an expressive wave at the hovercraft's sensor array which clearly showed the tracking signal from Shego 2.0 holding steady and stationary below them.

" Yea, whatever Doc," Shego replied testily, " you do know I'm charging extra for you interrupting, right?" She was rewarded with a wince and a cringe from the madman, " Oh…and the no hanky panky…good luck with that one, you're not my father….though if you want to put Ron in a broom closet, fine by me. Haven't done it in a broom closet yet." Satisfied she'd added another layer of psychological scarring to her employer, she took her time extracting herself from Ron's lap and heading back towards the rear of the hovercraft.

Ron, at least, had the decency to appear chagrined, " Umm…sorry Dr. D, kinda got caught up in the new freedom and all. You know how it is, right?" Without waiting for an answer he headed after the villainous vixen, all the while puzzling over how odd it was to actually be apologizing to a longtime foe. * Yea * a slightly sarcastic voice popped up at the back of his mind, * dating your best friend's greatest enemy is normal, but apologizing to Drakken…that's the odd thing.* Still, he couldn't help but smile, normal had never been his thing anyway.

Drakken watched the pair as they waited at the top of the ladder then turned his attention to the hairless rodent on the dashboard, " Between you and me my naked friend, I'm glad I'm not her father. I'd rather not go grey prematurely."

" Yup, yup" Rufus agreed, gesturing at his own hairless body, " Wrinkles too!"

" I heard that!" Shego called threateningly, causing both man and rat to cringe yet again.

Ron turned his attention from the raven haired woman's doppleganger's ascent to shoot Shego an amused smile, " What, are you saying that they don't make good points?" The glare he received in return convinced him that agreeing with them wasn't in his best interest, he turned back to the ladder, " So," he began, hoping to change the subject, " Not that I'm not impressed, but how did you guys pull this off anyway…I wouldn't think that you'd want a clone running around. I mean you're one of a kind." Noticing a black glove gripping the next to last rung, he leaned over slightly and offered a hand to Shego's "new little sister".

Shego blushed lightly at the offhand complement and stole a quick glance towards the pilot's chair to make sure no one noticed before reaching down to take the syntho-drone's green gloved hand in hers. " Well," she began as they assisted the replica into the hovercraft, " you wouldn't believe it but this is one of the few…scratch that…the only one of blue boy's brain storms that isn't completely whacked. You see what's going on is…" She trailed off suddenly, not liking the appreciative glance the synthetic woman was giving her boyfriend. * I'm imagining it * she told herself * there is no way I'm seeing what I think I'm seeing. It's a robot for crying out loud…it doesn't get horny…yep…just normal jealousy going on here.*

Before she could continue her explanation, the syntho-drone took advantage of the gap in conversation, " Hello lover," she purred, letting go of the original's hand and pulling Ron tightly against her body, " Miss me?" Without waiting for a response, she captured his lips in a brief but searing kiss. Releasing the dumbfounded young man the synthodrone walked to Shego and wrapped an arm around her waist, favoring Ron with a wicked grin. " Now that there's two of us, what do you say we make some of his fantasies come true "sis"?"

The only thing keeping Shego from igniting her hands and reducing the synthodrone to slag was the memory of how damn long and annoying it was go get her on line. On the other hand, there were other ways of turning it off. " Well," she replied trying for a mixture of interest and arousal through her clenched teeth, " I'd have to say that sounds like…," she slid her free arm up the synthodrone's back and under the hair to where she'd remembered the emergency off switch had been implanted and jamming the switch with a slender finger, " someone has a hell of a lot of explaining to do, DREW!" Letting the deactivated drone fall to the floor, she stalked back towards the pilot's chair where Drakken was doing his best to curl into a small ball. Rufus, deciding that running like hell was the better part of valor, leapt from the dashboard and scampered for the safety of Ron's suit pocket, praying that the woman with the flaming hands and murder gleaming in her eyes didn't notice him as he passed. "Well?" She growled, gripping the headrest on each side of Dr. Drakken's head and turning him to face her; her hands leaving deep furrows in the metal.

The rapid shivering of a naked mole rat in his pocket snapped Ron from his daze, " I kissed a synthodrone!" he screamed, repeatedly wiping at his offended lips, " An admittedly hot synthodrone, but still a synthodrone…" He glanced up to find that Shego was now glaring daggers in his direction, her hands burning even brighter if possible. " Right…shutting up and letting you interrogate and/or beat Dr. Drakken until your heart's content. I'll just be…." He quickly took a step as far from the prone sythnodrone as he could in the cramped confines, " right here. I'll be right here. And quiet."

" Well, Lipsky?" Shego threatened, turning her attention back to the cowering doctor. "I'm waiting. And I don't think I have to point out that if I'm not happy with your explanation, I'm not the only one here who isn't going to be happy. Am I making myself clear?"

" Crystal," he squeaked, his adam's apple bobbing convulsively as he tried to figure out a way to keep himself intact. " You see," he began in a somewhat more even tone, " Due to your extremely strong will and private nature concerning your personal life, the mind and personality mapping algorithm wasn't able to create a complete operating program for Shego 2.0 to run on…so I had to locate a supplemental source of information on how she may behave in the presence of the buffoo…errrr…Ron," he amended quicky, figuring that anything he could do to lessen his henchwoman's ire might prolong his life. "Fortunately, there was a new movie to come on one of those movie channels that we pay too darn much for that seemed perfect; it had something to do with a young hero and a villainess who fell in love…the title escapes me, but they said it was based on a true story." He offered a weak smile, hopeful that the truth would be sufficient to sate her.

Shego's eyes widened in shock and she extinguished her hands as the words sunk in. * No way * she thought vehemently * No way in hell is was he actually stupid enough to base part of the programing on that damn skinemax movie…wait…of course he is.* Her eyes narrowed to slits and she raised her right hand, relit, and held it aloft, savoring the terror reflected in his eyes. " UnStoppable? You based part of its personality off of a softcore porn about me and Ron? Oh…it is soo beyond time for Drakken to go ouch"

" Wait! Wait!" Drakken cried, throwing his hands up to shield his face, " how was I supposed to know it was based on you and the buffoon? His last name is…" he paused, wracking his brain for the information, " Stoppable! The movie is called UnStoppable! It's the exact opposite!" Unfortunately, his flawless logic didn't seem to penetrate the haze of rage swirling in her emerald eyes and the last thing he saw was her had begin its descent before he closed his eyes and whimpered "Mommy."

Fate, it seemed, however decided to take pity on him, as Ron, startled into motion from the sheer shock of Drakken actually remembering his name, leapt forward and caught Shego's arm before she could connect. " Wait Sheen…Shego," he corrected tenderly, waiting for her to turn her head to meet his eyes before continuing, " as much fun as it would be for you to beat him senseless and as much fun as I would have watching it," he added with a smile, " We are king of hanging in the middle of the air where anyone who happens to look up just might spot us and call the police and global justice. Perhaps we should get back to the lair before any beatings proceed?"

Shego sighed and extinguished her hand, " I hate it when you get logical on me sidekick." Turning her attention back to her employer, she glared, " Fly." Without another word she pulled herself free from Ron's grip and stalked back to the back of the hovercraft and took a seat on the floor beside the synthodrone, her body language clearly indicating that she wasn't exactly happy with either of the men at the front.

Recognizing that she clearly needed some alone time, Ron spared one more longing glance at his love and then settled back into the copilot's seat. " You owe me big time Drakken." He deadpanned, gazing out at the landscape as it passed below them, " I mean really, really owe me…cause if she doesn't get to take her anger out on you, then she'll probably take it out on me, and I don't mean in a good way." He let his head drop back against the headrest and closed his eyes, taking a few much needed deep breaths. * Well, no one ever said love was easy * he thought. Even knowing she wasn't thrilled with him couldn't keep a smile from tugging at his lips at the thought that somehow he'd captured the heart of such a vivacious woman. Opening his eyes again, he turned the chair to face Drakken. " And why did you need a synthodrone of Shego in the first place? I mean those ones you had at the bank seemed to be pretty damn efficient, why not just use a few of those?"

His heart rate having returned to normal, Dr. Drakken grinned, pleased with the opportunity to expound upon his genius once more. " Ah yes, you were incarcerated when we came up with the idea for Operation Romeo and Juliet. You see, Shego 2.0 here was phase one of the operation…once we get back to the lair we can begin phase two, which will of course involve creating a synthodrone replica of you so that they can go on a crime spree which will end in a blaze of glory…well…a blaze of some sort anyway…from which "Ron Stoppable" and "Shego" will not emerge…to the world you'll be dead, and thusly able to begin your new lives under assumed identities."

Ron blinked slowly, allowing the words to sink in fully, before reaching across the hovercraft and smacking Drakken in the back of the head. " Really? Romeo and Juliet? I fall asleep in English class half the time and even I know that that's a horrible name for a plan…their plans kind of ….oh, I don't know…failed almost as badly as most of yours do." He couldn't be sure, but he thought her heard a snicker from Shego at his outburst. " Secondly, while I'll admit that the faking death and getting on with our lives sounds like a good idea…not too crazy about the whole crime spree angle. I've put my parents through enough already, I'd rather not leave a permanent stain on the family name if I can avoid it. I mean how would you feel if your mother found out what you really do with your time Doc?"

Drakken nodded slowly, " I can see why Shego hates it when you're logical," he grumbled reluctantly, " You're supposed to be the buffoon…it upsets the natural order when you actually have a point. So, if no crime spree, how are we going to go about this and make it convincing?"

For the first time in what felt like forever, Ron allowed himself a genuine smile, " Come on doc. We have two former heroes, one mad scientist and one smarter than average naked mole rat. I'm sure we can come up with something convincing." Glancing back towards Shego, he found her staring at him with an oddly unreadable expression. * I hope * he added silently. The rest of the flight to the lair was completed in if not companionable, then at least comfortable silence.

Almost as soon as the hovercraft set down in the lair's hangar, Shego started into motion, vaulting over the edge and briskly walking off into the depths, no doubt headed for her personal room. Ron began to follow only to be stopped by Drakken's hand on his shoulder. " Err…Ron," the older man started uncertainly, " I may not know a lot…or anything really…about young love, but I have seen just about every single one of Shego's moods and right now, she needs some more time to work through whatever it is that's bothering her. If you go after her now, it won't end well." He waited until he saw the understanding in Ron's eyes before pressing a button on the control panel, lowering an exit ramp for the craft, " Besides…I could use your help with the synthodrone…not that I'd ever call the woman it's modeled after fat mind you…it's just…you know, moving a dead weight is a lot easier with two people. And once we get her down to the lap, turned off of course, we can start on your very own synthodrone." He walked over to the prone synthodrone and slid his arms under her shoulders, waiting for Ron to join him.

Ron paused, gazing in the direction she'd headed off, wanting to just rush after her and let her know everything would be alright, but a part of him couldn't help but realize that Drakken probably knew what he was talking about. Still, that didn't mean he was without options; after all, he did have a mole rate of above average intelligence to help out. " Be with you in a sec Dr. D," he said, lightly tapping his right pant pocket to rouse the rodent who'd fallen asleep on the flight, " Hey buddy, think you can go keep Shego some company for a little bit? I doubt she's actually mad at you."

"hnk, ok," Rufus chirped, nodding quickly before scampering out of the pocket and down Ron's leg, his keen sense of smell easily picking up Shego's unique scent.

Ron watched as his small friend scurried off into the lair's depths until Rufus was out of sight and then with a sigh, walked over to the synthodrone and picked up her legs. " Lead on Doc," he said, feeling an odd weight settle on him. As they made their way down the ramp and towards the lower labs, Ron couldn't help but consider how odd it was to see one of Drakken's lairs without having to look for a self destruct switch of some sort or dodge energy blasts from incompetent henchmen. It was pretty surreal he decided. " So Drakken," he began when the silence became uncomfortable, " where are all your goons? I mean, any other time I'm in one of these places and they're crawling all over. Now, I'm practically getting a guided tour and I haven't seen so much as one."

Drakken grunted in response as his back hit the door to the synthodrone labs, pushing it open, " Well I'm not the only one here who's learned when to give Shego a wide berth when she's in one of her moods," he paused to give Ron time to clear the door as well, " most of them pick up pretty quickly that they should make themselves scarce…since they have full health plans, but not workers comp or paid time off, they figure it's easier than having to put in a full day with broken bones." Spying an open lab table, he inclined his head towards it to the left, " Let's set her up there and then we can get to work." With minimal effort, the two got the deactivated synthodrone up onto the table. " Ok, I'm going to get the program activated, why don't you go stand on the digital imaging pad and put on the brain mapping helmet." He gestured towards a bank of computers at the far end of the lab, on top of which sat a silvery conical helmet which vaguely reminded him of the attitudinator . Next to the computer on which sat the helmet was a slightly raised circular pad that looked like it would fit in on a science fiction movie set.

" Uh, sure," Ron hedged as he made his way towards the device, " you're sure this is going to work, right? It's not going to blow up or anything?" He stepped up onto the pad and placed the helmet on gingerly, doing everything he could to convince himself that just because he'd blown up a few labs didn't mean that explosions were a natural outcome of his presence in one.

Drakken nodded absently as he finished initializing the program, " Of course it will work. The only reason we had any issues with Shego 2.0 is how closed off the original is. You're a much more open specimen. There shouldn't be any problems at all. Furthermore, there shouldn't be any need for supplemental data." He smiled tentatively, " Granted, this has been attempted once before, and that was with Shego, but theoretically, this should be a piece of cake." With that he threw the final switch in the initiation sequence before Ron could bring up any objections.

As the implications of what the mad doctor had just said sunk in, Ron could feel himself rooted to the imaging pad by a powerful flow of energy. * Well, at least there will be two of us to kick his ass if this doesn't go perfectly * was the last thought he was aware of before his mind went blank.

Meanwhile in her sparsely decorated quarters, Shego sat on her bed, her legs crossed beneath her. After leaving the hangar she'd ditched the blonde wig and glasses and washed off the make-up before trading the rest of the disguise for a spare jumpsuit. Feeling more herself, she came to the realization that with phase one of the operation a success, all she had left was time to think before phase two would be even close to ready. * Great, the first phase of a plan actually goes off flawlessly and I can't be happy about it, why? Because there's no way it can be this easy. I'm the bad girl, the bad girl doesn't get the nice guy everyone knows that…well everyone except my stupid "little sister" * she groaned and leaned back, banging her head against the wall. " Stupid Drakken," she groused, " I'm closed off just because I don't like to get all gooey about my feelings? Really? Like it's a bad thing to be private sometimes? So let's just fill in the blanks with a porno parody. Wonderful." With a strangled cry she turned her upper body and drove her right hand into and through the wall, leaving a decently sized hole and coating her hand in drywall dust. Pulling her fist free, she carefully brushed the dust away, " Of course there's not a scratch, the way these places go up when the self destruct is triggered I'd be surprised if they weren't made out of papier-mâché." The small act of destruction did make her feel a little better however, and she was considering going to the gym to work out more of her issues when there was a faint knock on the door. " It's open," she called, trying for casual as she carefully positioned a pillow in front of the hole and leaned back against it.

There was a brief pause before the door opened just a crack, followed by the staccato of sharp nails on the stone floor. Moments later, Rufus climbed up onto the mattress and examined her carefully. " You ok?" he chirped, tilting his head to the side analytically or as analytically as a hairless rodent could.

In spite of herself, Shego smiled, " Yea little guy. It's just setting in you know? I mean, I half expected the plan to fail and now that it looks like it could actually work, I'm not sure what to expect. Winning isn't exactly something we're used to here."

Rufus nodded sagely and offered a sympathetic smile, " You, Ron, talk." He offered helpfully, crawling up onto her knee.

Shego chuckled ruefully, " Can't we fight instead? It's easier than talking." She lightly scratched the mole rat behind his ears, " I mean, on the way here, he called both of us former heroes, but I'm not sure how true that is." Off the rodent's confused glance she continued, " See, he's never really done anything that bad; the whole Zorpox episode aside…he could certainly go back to the whole hero gig. Me? I'm a different story. Even if I wanted to go back to being a "hero" I couldn't. There's too much baggage there and if he stays with me, he's just going to get pulled down by it and it's not fair, you know?"

Rufus placed a paw under his chin, considering it carefully, " Ask him.," he finally said, looking up at her meaningfully.

Shego sighed, closing her eyes and leaning back against the pillow, " It's not that easy you know. " She paused, gathering herself for what she had to say next, " I mean, what would he say if he knew that I initially planned to just use him to break up Team Possible so Drakken and I would actually have a shot at taking over the world? Of course I didn't count on falling in love with him."

" I think he'd say that he wasn't exactly surprised," Ron's vaguely amused voice came from the doorway, " Especially when you consider that it worked out almost as well as Dr. Drakken's plans."

Shego's eyes flew open and she stared open mouthed at the doorway, taking in Ron's form leaning casually against the frame, a kind hearted smile playing across his lips. " You heard that, huh?" she managed once she found her voice again. * Of course he heard that you idiot * a part of her snapped. She glanced away, feeling her cheeks flame.

" Hey Rufus," Ron said, " Would you mind giving us some privacy?" Rufus nodded quickly and gave Shego a thumbs up before scampering off her knee, jumping off the bed and heading out the door.

" He's a good listener," Shego offered with a half hearted smile. * Here it comes, now that he knows the truth, it's over. Shouldn't be surprised* she mused.

" He really is," Ron agreed, crossing the room to sit on the bed beside her, " and yes. I heard what you said." He smiled and cut off any argument with a finger against her lips, " And you know what? It doesn't matter. I couldn't be happier with the outcome." He removed his finger from her lips and gently traced it along her jawline, never breaking eye contact. " Sheena, when you found me that night at that bar, I was in a really bad place. I didn't think that I could ever find someone who would accept me as I am if my best friend couldn't." He paused, " You know, if I was honest with myself, part of the reason I went home with you was probably because I knew Kim wouldn't approve. But then I got a glimpse of you, the real you behind that tough girl exterior you like to hide behind…and you know what? She's beautiful. Inside and out. How could I not love you and want to be with you?"

Sheena blinked quickly, doing her best to keep the tears welling behind her eyes from falling, " I am a tough girl," she laughed shakily, " It's not just an exterior." She was rewarded with just a smirk. " I am damn it." She slapped his leg gently. Turning serious, she left her hand resting on his knee, " Are you sure Ron? I mean you could still have this great future, you shouldn't have to give it up for me."

He covered her hand with his, intertwining their fingers, " You know, I think I still do have this pretty great future ahead of me right here. It's not really giving anything up if it's what I want, is it?"

Sheena looked down at their intertwined fingers, considering her next words carefully, " Is it though?"

In reply, Ron leaned in and captured her lips with his own, releasing her hand just long enough to wrap his arms around her and pull her tightly against him; pulling back slightly when air became an issue. " What do you think?" he smiled.

Fighting back the rising tide of emotion that threatened to have her grinning like some sappy school girl with a crush, she gave a wicked smirk, " I think there's a broom closet just down the hall…it'd be a tight fit, but I'm up for it if you are." She slid her right hand down his back suggestively for emphasis.

The sudden rush of blood from his brain in a more southerly direction left Ron with spots dancing momentarily in front of his eyes and trying to remember how to breathe without hyperventilating. " You really think we could make it to the broom closet?" he asked, his voice deepened with desire. Deciding that turnabout was indeed fair play, and knowing she wasn't wearing anything beneath the black and green catsuit, he moved back from her just enough to slid his hands over the tight fabric until the cupped her breasts and gave a teasing squeeze.

Sheena arched against his hands with a low moan, " I guess broom closets can wait," she panted. Pulling back, reluctant to separate herself from his touch, she brought her hand up to her collar, deftly gripping the hidden zipper between her fingers and pulling it down to her navel. Locking eyes with her love, she unfolded her legs and slipped off the bed before sensually sliding her uniform off and kicking it to the other side of the room, leaving her naked before him.

For a brief moment, Ron was sure that his heart was going to explode. * Then again * he thought idly * if that was the last thing I saw before I died, it would definitely be worth it* He let his eyes leave hers to slowly travel down her body, taking in the curves of her ample breasts and the way her tight, dark green nipples stood out in contrast against her pale flesh before continuing downward, over her sleek legs and then allowing them to move up again, as though he couldn't get enough of just looking at her before finally meeting her eyes once more. " Wow," he breathed.

To her credit and surprise, Sheena didn't blush under his gaze. * Don't know if I'm ever going to get used to him looking at me like that * she thought * but I'm definitely going to enjoy finding out if I can.* . Deciding he'd gotten enough of a show, she cleared her throat delicately, " You know…I kind of like that suit you're wearing…so if you don't want it burned off, you've got two minutes to take it off." She raised her right hand and let it ignite, " One twenty," she began counting with a smirk. Despite the temptation, she had no intention of destroying what was likely the only decent looking clothing he owned. * But* she thought, allowing the smirk to grow wider * there's no need for him to know that. After all a girl's got to have some secrets*.

The threat was enough to get him moving, though he couldn't help but notice that the flame did cast some interesting shadows across her body. * Right…file that away for later* he reminded himself as he focused on getting undressed. The last stitch of clothing hit the floor just as Sheena reached one. " In my defense…it was kind of hard for my brain to get my hands to work…someone was kind of distracting me." He smiled, waiting for he hand to extinguish, before moving to her and slipping his arms around her back.

" Mmmmm," she purred, closing the distance between them, " I'll show you distracting." She tilted her head up to meet his lips and ground her lower body teasingly against his length, thrilling as she felt him stiffen even further in response. She lightly brushed her tongue against his lips, slipping it into his mouth as they parted and caressing his. She broke the kiss in surprise as Ron's hands slipped down her back and she found herself lifted against him, the tip of his penis brushing against her torturously slowly. " Ron," she panted, eyes pleading, " haven't we waited long enough?" Biting back a groan, she arched once more, trying to push down onto him. "We can do gentle later."

" You may have a point," he agreed, brushing against her once more and drawing an aching moan from her in response. " Want another?" With that he lowered her onto him, his breath catching as her heat enveloped him.

" Oh, that was…bad," she moaned, sliding up against him, " the joke…not this". Determined to keep his mouth otherwise occupied, she kissed him hard as she lowered herself again, her legs wrapping around his waist for support. * Hmmmm* she considered, * this could actually be more enjoyable than using violence to shut him up.* As he withdrew only to plunge into her warmth again, she decided it was definitely more enjoyable than violence.

Once again, Ron found himself thankful that years of women ignoring him had given him time to get to know his body and build up his stamina. Even with having been incarcerated without any conjugal visits, he was determined to make sure she found release before he did. Making sure to support her, he carefully crossed the room and pressed her against the wall , pressing into her firmly and groaning as she squeezed tightly around him.

Sheena's eyes widened as she felt him speed up the tempo, grinding against her clitoris on each inward stroke. " Oh…fuck," she breathed, her breath hitching as waves of pleasure began to build within her. Gazing into his eyes, she noticed a spark of amusement and pressed her lips to his before he could make any more bad jokes. * I love the man, but someday we're going to have to talk about his sense of comedic timing. * She broke the kiss, screaming in ecstasy as her orgasm washed over her.

Feeling her muscles clench around him, trying to pull him over the edge with her, Ron grunted and finally let go, spilling within her. " Oh, Sheena," he moaned, " that was…wow.." As he tried to catch his breath, he carefully released her and braced his hands against the wall. A moment later, she released her legs from his waist, letting him slide free as she stood up between him and the wall. " I think we can definitely manage that broom closet later," he smiled, resting his forehead against hers.

Sheena smiled back and gave him a quick kiss before ducking beneath his arms and walking on unsteady legs back to the bed, taking a seat on the edge. " I like the way you think," she replied, " I mean…we have some time to kill before the next phase of the plan. The last thing we need is Dr. D thinking your synthodrone needs a little supplemental programing too…I don't think the two of them breaking a ton of public indecency laws was the crime spree he was imagining."

Ron nodded as he crossed to take a seat beside her, " I know what you mean. Granted, it'd be my preferred way to go when I have to go…but that's hopefully a long, long time off" He smiled and slipped his arm around her waist, " Especially when you consider the whole our deaths are confirmed by our dental records angle. Now I'm as willing as the next guy to experiment but I can't even imagine how, lets go with vigorous we'd have to be going at it to actually ignite from the friction." They shared a brief laugh before Ron continued in a more somber tone, " So, you really think this thing has a shot of working?"

Sheena smiled hesitantly, " You know what? I think it does." She wasn't sure if he meant Operation Romeo and Juliet or their relationship but she decided the answer applied either way. " So, what do you want to do now?" she asked, leaning her head on his shoulder with a contented sigh.

"Well," he deadpanned, " We could always go find that broom closet."

Sheena lifted her head and stared at him, trying to figure out if he was serious or not. Unfortunately, for once his expression wasn't giving anything away. * Note to self sometime must play strip poker and see just how good his poker face really is * she thought with some amusement. " You're seriously ready to go again?" She arched a delicate eyebrow and favored him with a wicked grin.

Ron's answering grin matched her own, " Hey, I'm a red blooded American male, who just spent the past few days locked up in a secret paramilitary prison. A prison that as you're well aware bears absolutely no resemblance to a skinemax prison with hot female guards. I'm also sitting next to a goddess of a woman, with whom I happen to be head over heels in love and you have to ask if I'm serious about going again?"

Sheena rose from the bed, grabbing his hand and headed for the door, " Just making sure," she smiled, " Oh…and those female guard fantasies of yours? We can talk about those later." She pulled the door open and practically dragged Ron through into the hall behind her, ignoring his protests about clothes and modesty.


	18. Chapter 18

Bad As She Wants Me to Be

Chapter 18: Death is Just the Beginning

Author: RoguesKnight

Rating: M/MA- Language, violence, character death.

Disclaimer: Ron, Shego, et al, are not mine. I've simply borrowed them for a bit and I appreciate the Mouse's lawyers not coming after me for it. Also, the special guest in this chapter belongs to Disney/Marvel. Please don't send lawyers after me, but if an Avenger were to show up on my doorstep, I wouldn't mind.

Author's (final?) note: This originally started way back at the beginning as an experiment to see if I could actually write a sex scene or not. I had no idea just what a labor of love it would grow into. Thank you to all of you who've been there with me throughout this strange journey and kept me going. You guys rock! And as always, to my beautiful wife who somehow puts up with me and is willing to share me with the characters in my brain. …well…at least Ron anyway, she's a tad possessive when Shego's involved.

It had been three months since Ron's court date, and life in Middleton had returned to normal, or as close as it ever got for Kim. Even though she'd come to accept that maybe, just maybe, she wasn't the one he was meant to be with, she still missed him every day. She'd come to dread each time the Kimmunicator would go off, thinking that each time would be the time she'd have to come up against Ron in a fight, for the first time in their lives genuinely on opposite sides of the law. Fate, however, it seemed was taking a measure of pity on her and there had been no reports of any crimes with Dr. Drakken, Shego, or Ron's names attached to the reports. She still went on missions from time to time, when it was something she was reasonably sure she could handle on her own, like Adrena Lynn's plot to turn the Grand Canyon into the world's biggest skate park, or Frugal Lucre's plot to cripple internet shopping by means of a virus that would cap all bids at a one dollar maximum.

Other times she operated as a freelance advisor and sometimes field agent for Global Justice, assisting them on major threats or when it villain du jour came from her rogues gallery. Mostly though, she focused on school, which ironically enough, is where Ron's trial had had the most effect. After Judge Rockwaller was exposed as corrupt, Bonnie had lost her spot at the top of her much vaunted food chain; without her to maintain the strict rules that she'd set up and enforced, the food chain fell apart and students began to hang out with whomever they liked, regardless of what their social standing was. As wonderful as it was to behold, and not just because Bonnie finally got what was coming to her, it was that breakdown of social structure more than anything else that made her miss Ron, the simple fact that he wasn't there to witness something he'd advocated for for years.

As she had study hall for the last period of the day, Kim found herself in the school library preparing for finals when she was interrupted by the familiar tones of the Kimmunicator coming from her back pack. " Great, of course I can't just study in peace," she muttered, shutting her calculus book and rummaging through the bag until her hand found the device. " Go Wade," she said, trying to hide just how tired she felt, " Just tell me it's not…"

If the young genius heard the tiredness in her voice, he didn't remark on it. " No, it's not him…err…them," he reassured her with a weak smile. The question had become something of a routine and while he was as used to hearing it as she was asking it, it still provided a modicum of comfort to know that their old friend hadn't gone over to the dark side. " It's…well," he scratched the back of his neck, " Well I'd call it a hit on the site…but this is going to be hitting all the major news networks within the hour, so I guess it's really a preview of a message Doctor Dementor sent to the U.N."

Kim shuddered as a ball of ice formed in her stomach; while she knew there was no love lost between Dr. Drakken and Dr. Dementor, ever since Drakken had apparently disappeared off the face of the earth, Dementor's schemes had become ever more elaborate and deadly. * If he's sent a message to the U.N.* she reasoned * I'm guessing I'll be working with GJ on this one…which means the wonderful Agent Du.*. Somehow she managed not to roll her eyes at the thought, " Let's hear it Wade," she sighed, " Please and thank you."

Wade's image blinked out to be replaced by that of Dr. Dementor, " Attention governments of the world. If you care for your citizens, you will have wired to my Swiss bank account the sum of twenty trillion dollars, or suffer the consequences." The shot zoomed out to reveal an all too familiar cylinder jammed into what appeared to be some sort of transmitter. " For I, the great Doctor Dementor, have in my possession the pan dimensional vortex inducer. As you can see, I have incorporated it into my power amplifier satellite transmitter. Should you refuse my demands, I will target a different country every hour and have it sucked off the face of the earth, at which point my demand will triple each and every time. You have until midnight tonight to comply, or the first country to go will be the United States of America. I await your reply." The maniacal midget began laughing until the transmission was cut and Wade's image returned to the small screen.

" This sounds bad Wade," Kim said, pushing back from her table and throwing her calculus book into her book bag before heading towards the library door, " What do you think the odds are that he can actually do what he says he can?" Exiting the library she made a sharp right turn and headed for the closest exit, which would put her out beside the football field, giving GJ a clear spot to pick her up.

Wade frowned, clearly thinking it over, " To be honest Kim, I'm not sure. I've reviewed all the data global justice has on the PDVI and their knowledge of its capabilities is spotty at best. Given that it managed to transport you into a dimension where television programs were reality…I think he's got a pretty good chance of pulling it off. Let's face it, not only is Dementor smart, he's also fairly competent compared to most take over the world types." He paused, " Look Kim. I know you're good," Noting the look she was giving him he quickly amended the statement, " I mean the best really when it comes to these kinds of things. But, these are higher stakes than we're used to. Even with GJ, they're usually called on take over the world matters…this is almost a world ending matter…look, say the word and I can call in a couple favors, maybe get Team Go or Team Impossible to provide some back up."

Kim smiled, " Thanks, but no thanks Wade. It's Dementor, I can handle him, no problem. Even with Will Du backing me up, it shouldn't be too much of a hassle. Speaking of which, I think I see my ride. I'll give you a call once we've taken care of things." With that, she clicked the button to end the transmission and ran to the football field to meet the Global Justice hoverjet that had just set down. As the side door opened, she could see Will Du waiting for her, a spare Global Justice uniform dangling from his hands disdainfully. * It may not be the best looking outfit * Kim mused, tossing her bookbag ahead of her into the jet, narrowly missing Agent Du's legs * but at least they've cut down on how much I've had to spend on mission clothes.* " Hey Will," she grinned, knowing how much the informality bothered him, " Good to see you." She stepped into the jet and took the navy blue bodysuit from him.

" It's Agent Du, Miss Possible," he frowned, " I trust Mr. Load has already briefed you on the mission."

Kim did everything she could just to keep her smile in place, " Of course Agent Du," she rolled her eyes, " and considering I'm an Agent too, perhaps you should refer to me as Agent Possible. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go change. Why don't you let the pilot know we can get underway." Without waiting for a response, she turned smartly on her heel and headed towards the small restroom at the rear of the hoverjet's cargo area

Agent Du sat on a bench and waited for what seemed like an eternity for Possible to finish changing. * Why do I have to be stuck with the glory hound amateur?* he groused, checking the settings on his stun watch yet again, and not so casually checking the time while he was at it? Really, she should be more professional by now, like the pilot. I simply told him to lift off and he did, no lip, and we're on our way. Perfect, obedient, professional.* His mental rant was interrupted by the cushioning of the bench shifting as Possible took a seat next to him. Tempting as it was to comment on how long it took her to get ready, he held his tongue, after all, one of them had to be the professional. " I know you said Mr. Load briefed you as to the situation Agent Possible," he stated, " However, if you don't mind I would like you to explain for me your understanding of the situation and our mission parameters."

She knew it was immature but she couldn't stop herself from giving a mock salute, " Sir, yes Sir, agent stick up the ass." From the corner of her eye, she noticed with some satisfaction the way he silently ground his teeth together. * His dentist must love me* she thought with a small smile. " Let's see, I'm going to go with the usual, stop the bad guy, save the world."

Agent Du's eyes narrowed in annoyance, " Rather simplistically put Agent Possible," he acknowledged, " However, I fear there is additional information that Mr. Load was not made aware of as he is not an Agent of Global Justice unlike yourself." He paused, drawing himself up, his chest puffing with pride. " Not only are we to "stop the bad guy" as you put it, but Dr. Director has given instructions that we are to retrieve the pan dimensional vortex inducer as well as Dementor's power amplifier satellite transmitter, or baring that, schematics for the device."

" OK, just wait a second," Kim raised a hand, cutting him off, " Why on earth do we want the PDVI and Dementor's amplifier? I mean the amplifier's not any kind of threat without the PDVI. And as for that wonderful little piece of technology, I say we let it go boom with the rest of Dementor's lair when, inevitably the self-destruct goes off. It's more of a headache than it's worth considering someone manages to steal the darn thing every other week."

Agent Du frowned, turning just enough to see if his ever so naïve partner was actually serious, which, of course she was. " Agent Possible," he started, as though speaking to a young child, "Dr. Director has decided that while clearly those two devices are currently in the wrong hands, should Global Justice take possession of them, it could go a long way towards establishing and maintaining world peace, as no rogue state would dare step out of line if it meant that they may be wiped from the face of the earth." He paused gauging her reaction, which judging by the shock written across her face wasn't going to be complete agreement, at least she was silent. " That is why, it is imperative that there is no setting off of the lair's self-destruct mechanism or allowing Dr. Dementor to do so himself. To that end, Dr. Director has authorized the use of lethal force; if we cannot bring Dementor in to custody, then we are to bring him down." Agent Du leaned forward enough to reach beneath the bench and withdrew a silver metal briefcase with the Global Justice logo on it's side. Settling the case on his lap, he popped the clasps and withdrew an energy pistol and shoulder holster and set it on Possible's lap before pulling a second pistol free and setting it next to him.

Kim stared in shock at the weapon resting on her knees. Yes, she'd practiced with firearms as part of her Agent training, even besting Du's scores for accuracy and speed; and yes, she knew that occasionally Agents had killed or been killed in the line of duty, but she had never expected that she would be asked to take a life…even if it was to save billions of people. She was Kim Possible, she could do anything, except accept such a utilitarian perspective. " I don't do guns Will," she said quietly, " I'll stop Dementor, I'll even save his precious equipment for Global Justice, but I'm not, never have been, and never will be a killer, so you can take this back." She looked over to see that he had already returned the briefcase to beneath the seat and was finishing securing his own holster over his left shoulder.

" Ms. Possible," he said, disgust dripping from every word, " I will not take your sidearm back. You are under direct orders from Dr. Director. Should you refuse to comply with said orders, it will be my recommendation to her that not only will your status as an Agent be revoked but that we shut down your little website. How many people do you think you'll be able to help then? I'll give you some time to think it over." He stood and headed for the cockpit, pausing at the entryway, " But think fast Ms. Possible, we'll be at Dementor's lair in the Alps soon." Without another word, he opened the door to the cockpit and stepped through, letting it seal shut behind him.

Kim sat in stunned silence, alternately looking at the weapon in her lap and the sealed cockpit door. Despite knowing that Du would have her back in the coming battle; he was too much of a consummate professional to let his personal feelings get in the way, she'd never felt so alone on a mission. * That's the difference I guess * she thought morosely as she lifted the holsterd gun and began to slip into it * between having a colleague and having a partner. Ron wouldn't ever make me choose between having to take a man's life and saving everyone else on the planet, we'd find another way. Of course, that other way usually involved a naked mole rat with a penchant for disassembling doomsday weapons, but hey, it worked.* Her spirits buoyed by the memories, she smiled, " Ron may not be with me," she whispered to the empty room, " but that doesn't mean I can't find another way, he'd be the first to remind me that anything's possible for a possible. And besides, it's Dementor, a super villain wannabe with a Napoleon complex, how hard can this really be? Hell, even his dorky helmet isn't that original." Her mind made up, Kim pushed herself off of the bench and headed for the cockpit.

One very tense, quiet half hour later, the Global Justice hoverjet switched into hover mode twenty five hundred feet above Dr. Dementor's not so secret alpine fortress. " Well," Agent Du observed critically as he glanced over the radar display, " no signs that he's spotted us. No other aircraft in the area or indications of surface to air missile launches. Sloppy. Even if the stealth field cancels out radar detection, you'd think someone trying to ransom the world would use some good old fashioned manual spotters as well." He turned to Kim, seated in the jump seat behind the co-pilot and smirked , " Maybe you won't have to worry about using that big scary sidearm after all Agent Possible. This looks like it's going to be an easy one." Cocky smirk firmly in place, he rose from the co-pilot's seat and headed aft to the cargo bay, " Come on, let's get this over."

Kim bristled, biting back a few choice words and shared a look with the equally exasperated Global Justice pilot that clearly said they both thought Du was an arrogant ass. " You know, this just screams trap, right?" she observed as she made her way into the cargo bay and grabbed a parachute from the equipment locker. " No missiles doesn't mean that he's not expecting us.

Agent Du's smirk widened into a condescending smile, " Agent Possible, Dementor's demand was made to the United Nations, which is essentially a glorified legislature. Why would he expect us so soon? After all, he probably expects that they'll be arguing about whether or not to try and meet the demand until his deadline. We'll take him by surprise. Now, if you'll excuse me, one of us has a job to do." Without waiting for a reply, he slid the cargo bay door open and threw himself out into the evening sky.

Kim rolled her eyes as she finished slipping into her harness and ran for the door, throwing herself out after him. * Oh, one of us has a job to do all right * she thought sarcastically * Too bad it's me.* She pulled her arms in tight to her body as fell, doing her best to catch up to Du before she'd need to pull the chute; as much as she'd like to see him get his ass handed to him by the henchmen she knew without a doubt would be waiting, she was at least nominally his partner and she'd have his back even if he didn't appreciate it. * Besides * she thought * this way I'll get to see his face when he realizes I was right about it being a trap.* The thought brought a smile to her face that warmed her in spite of the Alpine chill. Below her, she saw Du's parachute deploy, jerking back towards her; she waited until they were almost parallel then pulled her cord, figuring she wouldn't be too far behind him. As her descent slowed, she caught sight of Du angling towards a skylight at the top of the fortress, and if the past was anything to judge by, it was more than likely where Dementor's lab was. From below came the faint sound of glass shattering as Will disappeared through the skylight, and a moment later, his chute tore away in a strong wind, clearly indicating he'd released it quickly for her to follow. " Here goes nothing," she muttered as she dropped through the hole he'd made feet first and braced for the tug of the chute catching on the broken frame. Seconds later, she slapped her release and fell the last few feet to the floor, landing in a crouch beside Agent Du.

Clearly visible against a far wall was the combination of the pan dimensional vortex inducer and Dementor's power amplifier satellite transmitter, wires running from the bottom of the device into a bank of computers next to it, there was no doubt it was operational and just waiting to be fired. Kim glanced around the room furtively, taking in the darkened stone archways that could easily hide an ambush. At the center of the room was a raised dais, upon which rested a ridiculously overblown ornate throne containing the megalomaniacal munchkin. " Welcome Kim Possible," he intoned, clearly amused, " I have been expecting you."

As they rose from their crouches, Kim couldn't resist shooting Du a look, " I told you so," she hissed, her eyes scanning the room again, waiting for the trap to be sprung and wondering from what direction it would come when it was.

Agent Du ignored her, unholstering his weapon and taking aim at Dementor. " It's over." he challenged, " by the authority of Global Justice, Dr. Dementor, you are under arrest. Now, power down your doomsday weapon and come along quietly or face the consequences."

Dr. Dementor glanced in Du's direction and laughed dismissively before turning his attention back to Kim. " Really Ms. Possible? A Global Justice agent for a partner?" he shook his helmeted head, tsking in mock disappointment, " You know, it was Dr. Drakken's opinion that your old partner Stoppable was the buffoon…and yet, I hear that even though his trial actually ended in his favor, he hasn't come back to you. It leads me to disagree with him, of course I would just on principle, but it seems that you were the actual buffoon." He grinned maliciously, obviously enjoying the way she bristled at the observation.

" Dementor!" Agent Du snapped, his blood boiling that he was dismissed so easily for that amateur Possible, " I'm telling you one more time. Surrender yourself and your weapon into Global Justice custody or I will fire." He paused, his finger tensing on the trigger, " You have three seconds to comply….two….one."

The diminutive villain sighed melodramatically, raising his hands over his head, " Fine, fine Agent, you win. I'll be down with you momentarily; I just need to get my GUARDS!" At their superior's shout, ten overly muscled henchmen in bright yellow shirts and black pants stepped out from behind the archways ringing the room, smiling smugly. " It would seem Agent, that you're outnumbered. Now, I give you the same choice you gave me," Dementor sneered, lowering his hands once more to the throne's armrests, " Surrender now, or face the consequences.

Careful to keep her hands well clear of her still holstered side arm, Kim slipped into a fighting stance, noting from the corner of her eye that Will had shifted his aim from Dr. Dementor and was swiveling on the balls of his feet, aiming at one guard and then another, as if he couldn't determine where the greatest threat was. " I see you got more muscle enhancing rights from HenchCo," she offered casually, " Tell me guys, do the rings cause your balls to shrink the same way injected steroids do or do you just like looking like purity ring wearing bodybuilders?" The comment clearly struck a nerve as the guards took a step closer, tightening the ring.

From the dais, Dr. Dementor laughed, " Ah, Ms. Possible, I do admire your spirit; pity that will be all that's left of you shortly. For you see, their physique is not the only thing that has been enhanced." He snapped his fingers and the guard closest to Agent Du darted forward, moving quickly enough that he was little more than a yellow blur and yanked the energy pistol from Du's hand before crushing it and letting it fall to the floor, a useless lump of twisted metal.

Kim gulped, " You know guys," she hedged surveying the room as she prepared to make her move, " About the whole purity ring thing? Yea…I meant it, you guys look ridiculous." The comment had the desired result as the guard directly in front of her let loose with a primal scream and charged. Kim took a moment to judge distance and speed and then leapt into a series of handsprings straight towards the charging behemoth. At the last moment, she pressed off the floor and flipped in midair before planting her feet on the back of his head and kicking off, adding her momentum to his own and sending him out of control into a guard across the room. It didn't knock them out of course, but it gave her some more fighting room and an idea. " Will," she called, ducking an attempted tackle from a nearby guard, " See if you can get their rings off."

Agent Du bit back an angry retort about how he should be the one giving orders and took off at a dead run towards the tangled henchmen, hoping to reach them before they freed themselves. As much as he hated to admit it, it was a sound plan. Kneeling beside the barely coherent thugs, he grasped the top one's right hand and slid the ring off of his finger, sighing in relief as the body shriveled in on itself leaving a scrawny specimen of a man in an overly stretched uniform. " That's one for me Possible," he taunted, turning his head to see her doing her best to continue dodging the near superhumanly fast henchmen. Sure, she'd knocked them together for him, but left the real work for the professional. * Typical* he thought * She plays around and I do all the real work*. Turning back to his task, he reached for the second thug's body only to find his hand completely encompassed by the thug's. His eyes widened as the henchman struggled to his feet, lifting Du by one arm before spinning in a circle and releasing the Global Justice agent in a perfect hammer toss directly into the base of Dementor's dais with a sickening thud.

From his perch above Dementor crowed in delight, " And that it would seem, would be a point for my team." He turned his attention from the insensate agent to Kim Possible; watching with grudging admiration as she ducked a clumsily thrown haymaker and swept her assailant's legs out from under him. " Impressive," he muttered as she sprang to the downed thugs head and delivered a punishing kick, knocking him out. " Perhaps when this is all over, I'll have to see if I can use some of her DNA to increase their agility." Even with two guards effectively out of the fight, he was confident of victory; after all even Kim Possible couldn't take the remaining eight on her own.

Removing the muscle enhancing ring from her unconscious opponent, Kim smiled up at Dementor, " And the good guys take the lead," she teased, feeling more herself than she had in what felt like ages. " You know shorty this isn't going to end like you're hoping, so why don't we just wrap this up. You give up, we take you in, and you cool your heels in a cell until you actually figure out a way to break out do you say?" Her smile faded as she caught sight of two thugs blurring towards her from opposite sides. Waiting until almost the last minute and hoping they'd collide with each other instead of her, she attempted to cartwheel clear of their path; to her credit, she cleared the henchman approaching from the left, only to be tagged mid- cartwheel by the one approaching her right, the force enough to throw her across the room into the wall. Only years of experience allowed her to turn enough to take the impact with her left shoulder rather than her head, though the resulting pop and lightening bolt of pain that came with it clearly indicated she'd dislocated it

Dementor chuckled darkly, " A tempting offer to be sure, Ms. Possible. I'll give you credit for bravery; however, let me make you a counter offer." He signaled to the remaining guards and as one the began to close in on the injured woman, forming a loose semi-circle, " You surrender now, and I may be so kind as to let you and your pathetic partner live in my new world. Your move."

Kim bit down on her lower lip as she frantically tried to think of a plan, any plan, that could get her out of this mess; unfortunately none came to mind. * I guess my luck couldn't hold out forever * she thought, fighting back tears of pain and frustration * I'm sorry mom, dad, tweebs…I don't think I'm coming back from this one.* Through the slowly tightening group of henchmen her eyes fell on the doomsday weapon, perfectly centered between two of the grinning goons. * Perfectly centered * she realized, a dim light of hope growing within her * just like at the GJ shooting range*. Ignoring the pain, she grabbed her still holstered energy pistol from where it sat against her injured shoulder with her right hand and aimed directly between the henchmen. " It's not your world yet doctor," she shot back. She took a deep breath and began to exhale slowly, just as she'd done in training, her finger tightening on the trigger.

Realizing just what Kim planned, Dementor waved his henchmen forward, " Get her now!," he shouted, the first inkling of panic settling in, " I will not be defeated again by a simple cheerleader!"

Just as the henchmen surged forward, to either stop the agent or if need be, take the shot themselves, the wall just to the right of Kim exploded outward in a shower of stone and dust, briefly obscuring her vision, though a couple of agonized grunts; a few octaves higher than she expected, suggested that some of the debris that definitely struck some of the thugs rather small target areas. " About time Global Justice sent in some reinforcements," she sighed in relief, letting the gun fall from her hand. Turning her head, she could make out two figures stepping through the hole in the wall, though the dust was still heavy enough to hide their features.

" Not quite Princess," came a voice Kim hadn't heard in far too long. As the dust began to settle, twin balls of green fire ignited, revealing the figures.

Kim blinked, wondering briefly if she'd actually been struck in the head by debris and was hallucinating. " Shego? Ron? What are you doing here? How did you know?" More questions flew through her mind, but couldn't make it out as she took in the sight of her unlikely saviors. Shego of course was dressed in her usual black and green catsuit, though, a bit dirtier than normal from the dust clinging to it, while Ron had traded his mission clothes for a simple black body suit and black gloves.

" Hey KP, long time no see.," he smiled as he stepped away from the raven haired villainess, who in turn immediately took a defensive position between Dementor's men who were stumbling back to their feet, and Ron and Kim. " Here, let me give you a hand up. " he bent down and carefully got under her good arm and helped her back to her feet. " Easy does it," he cautioned. Once he was sure she could stand on her own again he released her and turned to face the henchmen, who had frozen in place, unsure just what to make of the new development.

Finally convinced she wasn't hallucinating, Kim managed to get her vocal cords to cooperate, " Ok…seriously, what are you guys doing here? Did Drakken send you to steal the PDVI again? Seriously, he's got to learn that never works out for him."

Shego and Ron traded an amused look, " Same old Pumpkin," Shego sneered, " always willing to see the worst in people." Catching one of the henchmen trying to move forward from the corner of her eye, she fired off a bolt of plasma at his feet. " Ah ah ah sport," she teased, " We're catching up here, we'll get to kicking your ass in a minute, so just chill out."

" Amp down Shego," Ron chided, before turning his attention back to his old partner, " No we're not here to steal the pan dimensional vortex inducer. Believe it or not, we're here to help. Once Dementor's ransom demand hit the news, we figured we'd step in before Global Justice managed to really fuck things up." Seeing the flash of anger in the redhead's verdant eyes, he held up his hand in an attempt to forestall her wrath, " Note, I said that GJ would fuck things up, not you personally," he inclined his head towards the still unconscious body of Will Du where it lay against the dais, " Are you really going to argue the point?"

Reluctantly Kim shook her head, a weary smile playing over her lips, " You still don't like him, do you? I've missed you, you know." She took a step back, letting her eyes travel over her old friend's body, " You know basic black works for you, and hey, one piece…guess that means you don't have to worry about losing your pants on missions anymore" She couldn't be positive, but she was fairly sure the comment got a growl out of Shego.

Ron smiled, " I've missed you too KP." There was no doubt that that comment had elicited a growl from the verdant vixen just a few feet away, " In a completely platonic best friend kind of way" he hastened to add, " Look, you're obviously hurt, why don't you take Agent Dufus there and head out the way we came in, it's a fairly straightforward path, just out through the wall and down some stairs, then straight out through another hole in the wall…we weren't exactly big on looking for doors"

Kim shook her head, " No Ron. I still have a mission to complete and while I trust you.." she trailed off, casting a not so subtle glare at Shego's back, " let's just say this is something I have to see through for myself. Besides, the shoulder's just dislocated, not broken, if you don't mind giving me a hand with it?" She braced herself for the pain as Ron took her injured arm and popped it back into place. " Mother fu…" she slapped her hands over her mouth and blushed, just barely keeping the profanity from escaping.

" Well, as touching as this little reunion has been," Dr. Dementor sneered, "you will still fail. Seeing as the United Nations found it more appropriate to attack me instead of accede to my demand, I see no point in waiting for my generous deadline to pass. Guards, take them, but do not kill them yet. I wish them to witness their failure as the United States is sucked off the face of the planet." He quickly pressed a series of keys set into his throne and the lights in the room dimmed as the pan dimensional vortex inducer and power amplifier satellite transmitter drew power to fire.

The guards broke from their stupor and charged their opponents, determined to carry out the order. " Like hell you're going to win Dementor," Shego snarled, leaping over the rushing wall of flesh as Ron and Kim moved back to back for defense. Coming down lightly, she fired off a bolt of plasma at the power cords connecting the doomsday weapon to the computer bank , severing it before continuing into a forward roll and aiming two more blasts above and below the PDVI, turning the power amplifier satellite transmitter into a hunk of molten slag around it and firmly sealing the whole thing to the floor. " None of Dr. D's schemes ever worked," she grinned unapologetically up at her helmeted villain, " Do you realize just how pissed off he would be if I didn't stop one of yours? I'd never hear the end of it…and sorry, but I am not going to listen to him bitch until I'm old and grey." Her smile widened, " Actually, that was kind of fun, I take it back…I'm not sorry at all."

Doctor Dementor stared at what remained of his beautiful weapon in shock; his plan was so close to success, only to be ruined by Shego of all people. It simply wasn't acceptable; where was the professional courtesy as a villain? Unfortunately, as much as he may have wanted to attack her himself, he was more than aware that he wasn't her match in hand to hand combat. Then again, that's what he had henchmen for. " There will be a substantial bonus paid to whoever brings me her head…the body need not be attached to it." He announced. Looking towards the sounds of combat, he saw that Possible and her lap dog had managed to take out two more of his henchmen, but he felt confident that the remaining six would be more than enough to handle the interlopers. Indeed, two had broken off and blurred towards Shego in a flanking maneuver, leaving four to harass Possible and her friend. It was just a matter of time now.

" Ok," Kim panted, slightly out of breath as she ducked beneath another clumsy punch, " I'll admit it, Shego's almost as good as Rufus at taking apart doomsday weapons." She blocked an incoming blow with her forearm and countered with a punch to her assailant's nose which landed with a satisfying crack and splatter of viscera. " Speaking of which, where is the little guy?"

Ron caught a kick with his upper thigh and winced, " Don't let her hear you compare her to a naked mole rat…for all of our sakes," he grabbed the henchman's foot before it could withdrawn and twisted sharply cracking his ankle; still holding onto the foot, he shoved upwards, throwing the henchman off balance and causing him to fall backward and slam head first into the ground, taking him out of the fight. " And Rufus is back at home…errr…the lair…you know what I mean. We agreed that it may be for the best for him to sit this one out." He grinned fiercely and beckoned one of the remaining guards onward, " Next."

Shego was well aware of the two goons trying to flank her and suppressed a smile, settling instead for turning sideways, so that they were coming at her in exactly a straight line from each side, showing they hadn't learned anything from the first two to attack Kim. Shego feigned a yawn, and stretched her arms over her head, which only encouraged the henchmen to pour on even more speed. * This, is going to be special * she thought. When she judged that there was no chance for the dimwitted guards to alter their trajectories, she lowered her arms to her sides and sent a splash of plasma into each of their faces. With the guards blinded, she leapt straight up and allowed them to crash into each other before landing on their heads and driving them down into the floor. Stepping down lightly, she smirked, admiring her handy work, " Damn, sometimes I'm so good I amaze myself." Glancing up at Dr. Dementor, she waved cheerfully and even blew him a kiss, " You shouldn't be so upset Doc, look at it this way, I just saved you some money."

Dementor scowled, " And I suppose I should thank you for that." He paused, rubbing at his exposed chin thoughtfully, " Your reward shall be a firey and hopefully quite painful, death." He entered a series of keystrokes on his throne and a dome emerged from the dais to enclose the seat; with a low rumble the throne blasted free of the dais and out through the broken skylight into the night sky.

The three henchmen still on their feet looked to the skylight and then at each other before disengaging from their attacks on Ron and Kim and beat a hasty retreat through the hole in the wall Shego had blasted. " Well," Ron observed, scratching at the back of his neck, " that certainly doesn't seem like a good thing." The lights in the room suddenly went out to be replaced with red lights warning lights as the lair's computer system warned that the self destruct had been activated.

" My boyfriend," Shego smiled sardonically, " master of understatement." There was the muffled sound of a distant that was strong enough to shake the room. " Princess, Ron, I think we should follow their lead and get the hell out of here while we still can. Another, closer blast, rocked the room as the trio began to make their way for the hole.

" Wait!" Kim cried, " Much as I hate to admit it, we can't just leave Will here to die." She turned to find that Agent Du had finally regained consciousness and was unsteadily making his way to his feet.

" Well," Shego drawled, " His being mobile will make this easier." Turning her attention to the wobbly agent she yelled, " Move your ass Agent Dufus or lose it, your choice."

Du startled, staring at Shego and then Ron, " Shego, Stoppable! I shouldn't be surprised that you'd be here too. What happened? Decide to ditch Drakken for someone who looked like he'd actually pull off world domination?" He spat in disgust, " So much for the vaunted honor among thieves." His eyes shifted to Kim, " Agent Possible, arrest them as accessories to Dr. Dementor's scheme."

Kim rolled her eyes, " Oh for the love of…Will, we can discuss your paranoia later, after we find a proctologist to get your head out of your ass, now come on, the whole place is set to blow." There was another rumble of explosives and a thick cloud of smoke rolled in through the archways at the far end of the room. Kim's eyes widened as what was left of the dais trembled and began to fall towards Agent Du. She started to run in his direction, not even entertaining the thought that she wouldn't get to him in time. She was brought up short as Shego blew past her and shoved Agent Du well clear of the falling debris. She however, didn't quite clear it herself, a large slab lay across both legs, pinning her face down to the floor.

" Shego!" Ron screamed, practically flying to her side and trying to budge the stone from his love's legs. He was dully aware of Kim kneeling beside him and pushing at the stone as well. " Damn it Shego," he whispered, " He wasn't worth it, not by a long shot." He glared at Agent Du who had walked over and was staring down at the trapped woman, his eyes slightly glazed. " This is your fault," he hissed, " You're the so called good guy and you're so narrow minded that you couldn't see that we were here to help. That she was here to help. Hell, she stopped Dementor's whole fucking scheme while you were unconscious." There was a louder blast from the far end of the room and flames joined the smoke slipping under the archway.

" Ron," Shego coughed, turning her head to the side and pressing her arms against the ground before collapsing again, " It's time to go. You know we're not going to get this damn rock off of me, get out of here."

Ron moved to her side and took her hand gingerly, " Not a chance." He turned to face Kim and Agent Du, tears silently running down his cheeks, " You two get out of here, now. Just because Dementor's been stopped for now, doesn't mean that the world won't need saving again and you guys have the best shot of pulling it off. " He gave a weak laugh, " Well, provided Will here avoids any further head trauma. Now go."

Kim wiped at her eyes, not surprised to find that she was crying. * Hmmm…crying over Shego * a small, detached part of her mind noted * I guess I can honestly believe that stranger things have never happened*. " Ronald Stoppable, after all that we've been through, the good and the bad, if you honestly think I'm going to leave you to die you've got …." She trailed off at the determined look in Ron's eyes.

" Kim, the world needs you a lot more than it needs me," he said with a small smile, " Right now, Shego needs me." He gave his love's hand a soft squeeze before turning his attention to Agent Du. " Will, get her out of here, you know what you have to do." He grinned briefly, " Sorry, you probably get that all the time. Take care of KP for me."

Agent Du actually smiled, " I will Ron." Before Kim could object or ask what Ron was talking about, Agent Du aimed his stun watch at the redhead's back and fired; catching the young woman before she could hit the floor. He tossed her over his shoulder in a fireman's carry and paused, glancing back at Ron and Shego. " Ron, Shego…" his adam's apple bobbed convulsively as the words fought their way out of his throat, " I'm sorry." As the closest explosion yet rocked the room, threatening to collapse the exit Shego had made, he turned and bolted from the room.

Fifteen minutes and a few close calls later, Agent Du sat in the cargo bay of the Global Justice hovercraft that had set down in an open field not far from where the fortress had been; his head in his hands, he couldn't figure out how the mission could have gone so wrong. For once, he couldn't find any way in which it was the amateur's fault. * How am I going to explain this to Possible? * he wondered, looking up to see her slumped against the wall of the cargo bay.

Kim fought her way back to consciousness slowly, rubbing at her eyes with leaden hands * Whoa, did anyone get the number of the bus that hit me?* A small smile spread across her face * Great, I'm thinking like Ron. Ron!* Her eyes flew open as the reality of what had happened in Dementor's fortress slammed into her. It took her a moment to realize that she was sitting in a Global Justice hoverjet; as her focus settled on Agent Du across from her she growled, " You son of a bitch!" His head flew up at the sound of her voice, only to bounce off the wall as her fist connected with his face. " How could you Will?" She grabbed his collar, everything in her screaming to throttle the life out of him, " You stunned me and left my best friend to die just to save your own sorry ass?" She cocked her fist again only to find her arm caught at the elbow by the hoverjet's pilot before she could strike.

" Agent Possible," the pilot stated nervously, " Don't. It won't bring your friend back." He waited until he could see the rage in her eyes die down to be replaced by an infinite weariness. " I came back here to tell you we're getting a message from Mr. Load. You can take it up in the cockpit" The words were barely out of his mouth before Kim had released her grip on Du's collar, letting him drop to the floor. The pilot looked down at the battered Agent Du and shook his head in disgust, if what he'd heard was even remotely true, he couldn't blame Agent Possible for losing it a little. " I picked a hell of a day to stop smoking," he muttered before stepping outside to give Agent Possible some privacy.

Kim dropped tiredly down into the pilot's chair and reached out to key the receiver to broadcast the message onto the hoverjet's head's up display. " What's the sitch Wade?" She asked hopefully, after all, it wouldn't be the first time they had pulled off a last minute escape. However the deep red around Wade's eyes didn't bode well.

" Sorry Kim," the young man said, fighting back a fresh wave of tears, " I got what appeared to be a hit on the site. When it I saw that it was a message from Ron for us, I traced the IP and it was coming from Dr. Dementor's lab. I know that I should have waited but I thought it might have been some sort of trap." Her paused, tears leaking from his eyes, " I think you should see this too." He reached for a button on his end of the transmission and his image was replaced by Ron's.

" Hey KP," Ron said, trying to smile and not quite managing it as further explosions could be heard behind him, " I just wanted to tell you not to be too mad at Will. I meant it when I said that the world needs you more than it needs me. You're Kim Possible, you can do anything, and I want you to remember that." He coughed as the screen was momentarily obscured by smoke, " If our positions were reversed, I'd have wanted you to make the same decision." He paused, his eyes glazing over, " Actually, if our positions were reversed, it would mean you were the one in a relationship with Shego…hmmmmm…" he managed a weak laugh, " Sorry, I couldn't help it. I know she was your nemesis KP, but I wish we had more time so you could get to know her like I know her; I don't know how to put it better than this, she makes me happy Kim." He looked at something out of the camera's range. " I don't have much time…and Wade needs to hear this too." He paused as if gathering his thoughts, " I, Ronald Stoppable, being of sound mind and above the age of majority, do hereby authorize the release of all present and future Naco royalties from their holding account to the joint control of Mr. Wade Load and Ms. Kimberly Anne Possible." He smiled, his eyes watering, " Surprise, you guys deserve it and I know you'll be more responsible than I was the first time around. I have just one request. I want you both to take some of the naco fundage and set it aside for college. And Kim, if you could also set up college funds for Jim and Tim; and tell them I'm sorry I won't get to see them grow up, they're going to do some great things." Tears were freely flowing down his face, " Ok, I have to go. I love you guys." The transmission cut out suddenly.

Kim wiped ineffectively at the her eyes, waiting for Wade's image to come back to replace the black screen; after a couple of minutes without the screen changing, she checked her end of the transmission and saw that it was still connected, " Wade?" she asked, " Are you there? The screen's gone black."

" Yea, I'm here," came Wade's disembodied voice, " Sorry Kim, I'm just having a little technical difficulties with the transmission. You know how computers are." There was the not so subtle sound of sniffling.

In spite of herself, Kim smiled, " Yea, I know." She paused, doing what she could to pull herself together for her young friend. " It's going to be ok Wade." She didn't know how, but she was determined to make sure it really would be.

" I know Kim," Wade replied, sounding just about as sure of it as Kim did. " Hey," he paused, " will you let me know when all the…arrangements are in place? I think I'd like to be there for him."

Kim felt her smile grow wider even as she had to blink away tears, " Of course. I think he'd like that too." She glanced out the window to see what appeared to be nearly the full fleet of Global Justice hovercraft approaching the remains of Dr. Dementor's fortress. " Hey Wade, I've got to go. Duty calls." She paused, " I'll get back in touch with you as soon as I can, and if you need to call, for any reason you can."

It seemed to lift his spirits just a bit, " Thanks Kim. Talk to you soon." There was a barely audible click and the heads up display indicated that the transmission was terminated. Kim took a moment to compose herself and then headed out to get the pilot, after all, as she'd told Wade, duty called; she could break down on her own time later.

The Global Justice investigation of what was left of Dr. Dementor's fortress took little over a week to complete and through review of the remains found in the lab and dental and medical records in the Global Justice database, it was confirmed that neither Ronald Stoppable nor Shego had survived the blasts that had destroyed the building. What Kim found the most irksome was that despite the loss of Ron and Shego; who she was surprised to find she genuinely mourned, Global Justice considered the overall mission a success. Not only had Dr. Dementor been stopped, but they had found a cache of doomsday weapons and plans in an intact bunker. Fortunately, the upper echelons of Global Justice command were spared her immediate wrath as she had thrown herself into the funeral preparations for both Ron and Shego.

Two weeks after the mission in the Alps, Middleton Memorial Cemetery was overflowing with mourners. Dignitaries from around the world, celebrities like Britina and the O'Boyz, and the everyday people that Ron had helped as part of Team Possible had flocked to the town to pay their respects to a young man who'd never have realized just how much of an impact he'd made on their lives. Due to the extreme security issue raised in protecting the various world leaders, including the President of the United States, Global Justice forces and the Middleton Police were supplemented by S.H.I.E.L.D forces and Team Go, who had come in to say goodbye to their sister. There had naturally been some controversy over the decision to honor a noted criminal in the same way as a local hero; however, Kim and sto her surprise Agent Du had argued until they were blue in the face that Shego deserved to be honored for her sacrifice too and seeing as there wasn't enough left from the blast to give a proper burial, the Stoppables and Team Go had been presented with urns containing the remains of their loved ones, while twin eternal flames were established in the cemetery.

Kim had declined the opportunity to sit with the diplomats and dignitaries to sit with her family and the Stoppables before the simple stone monument which would house the flames once ignited. She knew she should be paying attention to what the President had to say about her friend but found her mind wandering. She glanced down the row of folding chairs and saw Wade sitting with his mother at the end, looking just as lost as she felt. He turned his head and met her gaze, offering a sad smile, which she returned with what she could only hope was a supportive wave. She was pulled from her reverie by a tap on the shoulder. " You're up Kimmie-cub," her father informed her, giving her shoulder a quick squeeze and nodding towards the now empty podium before the monument.

Somehow she got her leaden legs to cooperate and she made her way behind the podium, on the front of which were mounted two photos provided by the families, one of Ron, the other of Shego. " I..I don't want to be here today," she started honestly, " I wish that none of us had to be here today and we could have our loved ones back." She took a deep breath and gripped the edges of the podium for support. " Ron Stoppable was, is, and always will be my best friend. We met fourteen years ago on our first day of Pre-school. He was this kind of weird kid with an impressive vocabulary for a four year old and an imaginary best friend named Rufus," she smiled at the memory, " he was also, the only one there willing to talk to a shy little redheaded girl. He must have recognized somehow the two outcasts belonged together. He never cared what other people thought of him, taking "never be normal" as his personal motto. Even as we got older and like everyone else, I just wanted to fit in, he had no problem with standing out." She laughed softly, " Though his definition of standing out usually lead to ridicule from the "popular" crowd, it didn't bother him, but the moment anyone would say anything negative about me, he was there defending me. That's what made him truly stand out, he was an outstanding friend, never one for the limelight; he preferred to hold the light for others. He never would accept the title of hero, or even acknowledge that he was a partner in Team Possible; he viewed himself as just the sidekick, just the distraction." She paused once more and looked out amongst the crowd, seeing several heads nodding at the truth in her words. " But the thing is, he was more than my friend, he was my inspiration, my hero. No matter what, he never gave up. Even when faced with his own death, he reminded me of how much he believed in me; his faith is a gift that I can never repay and his passing will be a loss I feel every day for the rest of my life."

She closed her eyes, not quite sure what to say, and when she opened them, she found herself staring directly at Team Go, taking a moment from providing security at the back of the crowd. Knowing they'd lost just as much as she had, she found the strength to continue. " I'd like to just take a moment to say a few words about Shego." She said softly and waited for the murmur of the crowd to die down. " I think we're all aware that there was no love lost between the two of us, but I respected her. Not for what she did," she raised her hands for quiet as another murmur spread through the crowd, " At least not in the last few years. But she challenged me, never letting me get away with giving anything less than one hundred percent. I've often thought that I could have ended up like Shego but for the grace of Ron. She started off as a teen hero, and she ended her life as a hero again, the stuff in between doesn't matter anymore as far as I'm concerned and I know that change had something to do with being in love with Ron." She wiped at a tear that had broken free from her eye, " I wish that I could have gotten to know her the way he did. If Ron could find something worth loving in a woman that most of the world had written off, then maybe we weren't looking hard enough. And that is the message that we should take away from this, if anything, we should take a closer look at the people around us before we make any judgments. While we may only get one chance to make a first impression, that doesn't mean that it's the right impression. Thank you." Wiping at her eyes, she made her way down from the podium and back to her family.

After her eulogy the funeral mostly broke up, aside from a few mourners who had stayed to give their condolences to the Stoppables and so Kim found herself relatively alone before the monument, lost in thought as she gazed into the two flames, one bright blue to represent Ron, the other a deep green; naturally, for Shego. She knew she should go, Felix, Monique and the majority of the cheer squad had planned a wake of sorts for later so they could say goodbye in private, she just couldn't bring herself to move. * Damn it Ron* She thought angrily, wiping away tears for what had to be the millionth time over the past couple of weeks * What am I supposed to do without you?* It was silly, she knew, but she almost expected to get an answer from the flame. She was brought out of her thoughts by as soft clearing of a throat behind her. She paused as the sound was repeated * If I have to deal with one more reporter asking me about the real Ron Stoppable, so help me there's going to need to be another funeral today* she mused in frustration. Swallowing her irritation, she turned to face whoever it was, " Yes?" she asked, keeping her voice as even as possible.

The man behind her appeared to be in his mid-thirties, maybe his early forties, with chestnut brown hair which had patches of white running through it at the sides starting at the temples. He wore a black trench coat over a royal blue bodysuit; but perhaps the most striking thing about him was the eyepatch. " That was a beautiful eulogy, Ms. Possible," he stated without preamble, "very moving. I didn't mean to interrupt, but I wanted to come over and offer my condolences in person."

Kim did her best not to stare at the eye patch. * Geez, you'd think after years of dealing with Dr. Director I'd be used to people with eye patches * she thought, a small smile tugging at her lips * If Ron was still here he'd never stop teasing me*. Still, there was something familiar about the stranger; she felt almost as though she should know who he was. " Thank you," she replied, " That's very kind of you." She offered the stranger a smile and turned back to the flames, hoping he'd get the message and leave her in peace. When She heard him step forward to stand next to her, she knew that wasn't going to happen.

They stood in an awkward silence for a few moments before the stranger spoke again. " So, have you given any thought to what you're going to do now?"

Kim bristled, but decided to be polite, " Not a lot," she admitted, " College in the fall and I'm still going to do what I can to help people. I owe Ron that much."

The stranger nodded, " Global Justice?"

Kim swore she could almost hear Ron's voice telling her to amp down; all she wanted was to be alone and this guy just wasn't getting it. " Actually, I don't think so," she answered tersely, " I'm not sure I'd be a good fit with them anymore, we've had some differences of opinion on some things lately." As annoyed as she was to have her space intruded upon, it was oddly relieving to get that out in the open.

The stranger turned to study her profile thoughtfully, " I'm not surprised," he stated matter of fact, " I've read your file. I was hoping you'd be willing to sign on with my organization, we could use someone with your unique skill set and who isn't afraid to think outside the box."

At that, Kim whirled to face him, staring into his eye, " What the hell gives you the right to look through my file?" she seethed, her hands curling into fists at her side, " Who the hell do you think you are?"

The stranger smirked, clearly amused by her reaction. " Sorry, I've forgotten my manners," he held out his hand, " Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D." It was a challenge but he kept from laughing as the redhead's anger gave way to shock and her jaw dropped as she numbly shook his hand. " And as I said, I've read your file. Based on your scores on both intelligence and physical testing, you're clearly in the top five percent of non-super powered people on the planet, with the right training, you could easily move up even further. We'd like to offer you that training."

Kim sputtered in shock, dropping his hand, " If you've read my file, then you know exactly what my problems are with GJ, sir." She paused, carefully considering her words, " I don't know how working for S.H.I.E.L. D would be that much of a difference."

Fury nodded slowly, " I understand. You're used to being the one giving the orders and making the plans. It's also my understanding that you have issues with using firearms or taking a life in the course of a mission" He held up a hand, cutting off the argument he saw in her eyes, " Or that's the cliffs notes version anyway." He paused, " However Ms. Possible, while firearms training is required for all S.H.I.E.L.D agents, not all my agents believe in using them either; furthermore, there are several independent contractors shall we say, who occasionally work under our direction. People who, like yourself, don't believe in taking a life. I think you'd fit right in." He reached into his coat pocket and withdrew a business card, " You don't have to answer right away, I want you to think it over though." He placed the card in her hand and then turned and walked away without so much as a look back.

Kim stood there for a moment watching as he walked away, then looked down at the business card in her hand, not daring to believe it was real. There was a sudden whoosh from the monument and she turned back to it curiously. * I must be imagining things * she thought * there's no way Ron's flame is actually brighter. * Still, the thought comforted her. " Still looking out for me, aren't you Ron?" She whispered with a smile as she slipped the card into her pants pocket before turning and walking away from the monument.

It was well after midnight and Middleton Memorial cemetery had been cleared of mourners and all signs of the massive gathering that had taken place earlier in the day when three figures snuck in amongst the graves and made their way to stand before the twin flames of the memorial.

" I still don't know why we had to come here at night," Dr. Drakken shivered, looking around warily at the surrounding tombstones, " After all, you both sat and watched the funeral, did you really need to see this in person?"

"Yes!" Ron and Shego answered at the same time. Holding hands the pair stood before the flames in silence for a moment.

Ron, naturally, was the first to speak, " This is so weird," he smiled, turning to watch the play of light and shadow across Shego's face, " I've gotten the feeling that someone was walking over my grave before, I just never thought I'd be the one to do the walking."

Shego rolled her eyes good naturedly and gave his hand a squeeze, " Of course you couldn't be serious, even at at time like this." She gazed at the flames a moment longer, " Never thought I'd get a hero's funeral," she admitted. " So, where do we go from here?"

Ron shrugged, " I don't know. This whole being dead thing is new to me too." He paused and smiling, "But we just saved the world. I'm thinking a vacation is in order. What do you think Rufus?" He looked down to the pocket of his cargo pants where the naked mole rat was riding comfortably.

" Hmmm…yep yep…beach!" Rufus squeaked, nodding enthusiastically.

Shego grinned, " Sounds like a plan. And I do know of a few rather secluded islands where we could spend some quality time together." She winked and gave Ron's hand a reassuring squeeze, " You ready to go?"

Ron nodded, tearing his gaze away from the flames. Together they turned and made their way out of the cemetery, the same way they had come in, leaving Dr. Drakken to follow behind them, still watching the graves intently. " Errr…," he stammered, " a vacation is all well and good, you two obviously need more time to yourselves…but you do plan on moving out of the lair at some point right? Maybe even finding a lair of your own? One perhaps where the henchmen won't be afraid to open the broom closets when they need to get cleaning supplies? Right?"

**THE END?**


End file.
